Argentinian tennis player Sebastián Báez, who has had a very good start to 2026, defeated Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in five sets to advance to the second round of the Australian Open, where his opponent will be the Italian-Argentine Luciano Darderi (22nd). Báez, who reached the final of the ATP 250 in Auckland, won 6-4, 6-4, 3-6, 5-7, and 6-3 in a match that lasted 3 hours and 11 minutes. Báez continued to demonstrate his great form in 2026 during the first two sets against the Frenchman. Without conceding any service games, Báez managed to break his opponent's serve in the first set to win it solidly 6-4 against a Mpetshi Perricard who had a powerful serve and scored 12 points that way. In the second set, the French player, ranked 61st in the ATP rankings, showed greater resistance, but it was again the 25-year-old albiceleste, who reached the 18th position in the world ranking, who took the set, leaving victory and a place in the next round of the Australian Open very much on the cards. From there, things got complicated for Báez, as Mpetshi Perricard had a very good reaction to take the third and fourth sets, adding suspense to the match. However, Báez did not let negative thoughts take over and again showed his best level in the fifth and decisive set, where he only needed one break to secure a hard-fought victory. According to information from the Argentine News Agency, Báez's next rival will be Darderi, who was born in Villa Gesell but became an Italian citizen. If he wins and advances to the third round, the Argentine will equal his 2024 performance, which was his best at this tournament. Báez was the last Argentine to take the court in this Australian Open. Of the other seven, four advanced to the second round (Francisco Cerúndolo, Tomás Etcheverry, Francisco Comesaña, and Thiago Tirante), while three lost (Mariano Navone, Juan Manuel Cerúndolo, and Camilo Ugo Carabelli). The activity for Argentine tennis players at the Australian Open will continue with the second-round matches of Cerúndolo (18th), Etcheverry, and Tirante, who will face the Bosnian Damir Dzumhur, the British Arthur Fery, and the American Tommy Paul (19th), respectively.
