15 January 2026

Zeynep Sönmez Inscribes Her Name in the Australian Open Main Draw

Our national tennis player Ms. Zeynep Sönmez won the battle where she faced Ms. Anastasia Gasanova in the final round of the 2026 Australian Open qualifiers with sets of 6-3, 6-2 and advanced to the main draw.

Ms. Zeynep Sönmez, who advanced through the qualifiers without dropping a set, kept control of the game against Ms. Gasanova from the first set onwards. Using every area of the court effectively throughout the match, Ms. Sönmez claimed the first set 6-3. Starting the second set by breaking serve, Ms. Sönmez successfully used on-court variations to disrupt Ms. Gasanova's rhythm and, with an aggressive return game, won the second set 6-2, concluding the match in 1 hour and 29 minutes.

Succeeding in passing the qualifiers in a Grand Slam tournament once again after the 2024 Roland Garros, Ms. Sönmez's opponent in the first round of the Australian Open main draw, which will start on January 18, will be the No. 11 seed Ms. Ekaterina Alexandrova.

The Ms. Sönmez–Ms. Alexandrova match will be the second match in the program starting at 03:00 TRT on Sunday, January 18 (estimated match start time 05:00). The match will take place at the 1573 Arena. You can watch the match live on HBO Max.

15 January 2026