For the first time since 1990, two Americans aged 20 and younger reached the third round of the Australian Open. Both raised in Southern California, Alex Michelsen and Learner Tien are friends and frequent practice partners. This year’s Australian Open was a breakthrough for each. Michelsen, ranked 42nd as the tournament began, kicked off his Melbourne campaign with a first-round win over 11th-seeded Stefanos Tsitsipas.
He followed that up nicely, beating Aussie James McCabe and the hard-hitting Russian, Karen Khachanov, before losing to Alex de Minaur. Tien, a qualifier, went the distance in his first two matches. Most notably, in the second round, Tien took nearly five hours to get past fifth-seeded Daniil Medvedev, 6-3, 7-6 (4), 6-7 (8), 1-6, 7-6 (7) in what was arguably the best men’s match of the tournament.
