The second round of the Australian Open wrapped up with Thursday’s matches, so we’re set to move into the third. That’s not true for every draw thus far, due to the Extreme Heat Policy enacted on Thursday, but the important singles matches have been played and the show will go on.
Australian Open 2014 schedule and TV coverage for Friday’s matches
Novak Djokovic and Serena Williams will be back in action for Friday’s matches. Here’s how you can watch on your TV, starting Thursday night if you’re in the U.S.
Michael Dodge
The top seeds on both sides are still intact. Friday’s matches are set to get underway, which means they’ll be on TV Thursday night and into Friday morning for those in the United States.
Novak Djokovic, the No. 2 seed on the men’s side, will be in action for the third time. He’s set to take on Denis Istomin, who is unseeded but nonetheless dangerous. Djokovic has what many believe is an easy route to the semifinals and the finals, but Istomin is a legitimate opponent. Still, it’s nothing in comparison to Rafael Nadal’s side of the bracket, which includes Andy Murray, Juan Martin Del Potro and Roger Federer.
Women’s No. 1 seed Serena Williams will face her first seeded opponent of the tournament in No. 31 Daniela Hantuchova. Williams has dominated her first two opponents and, like Djokovic, she’s considered to have an easier route to the final rounds than her primary competition, No. 2 seed Victoria Azarenka.
Top seeds in action for the men include No. 3 seed David Ferrer (against No. 29 Jeremy Chardy), No. 9 seed Richard Gasquet (against No. 18 Tommy Robredo) and No. 15 seed Fabio Fognini, taking on unseeded American Sam Querrey. That matchup should be one of the highlights of the round, as Querrey is about as tough an unseeded opponent as one can get.
Top seeds in action for the women include No. 4 Na Li (against No. 26 Lucie Safarova), No. 9 seed Angelique Kerber (against unseeded Alison Riske) and No. 14 Ana Ivanovic taking on No. 17 seed and local Samantha Stosur.
Friday's matches get underway at 11 a.m. local time, which means television coverage in the U.S. begins at 7 p.m. ET Thursday. The Tennis Channel will get coverage started at 7 p.m. and run through 11 p.m., at which point ESPN2 will take over for the long haul, until 7 a.m. Friday morning. There's also live streaming from the Australian Open website here, if you qualify.
The full schedule can be found here.
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