Aryna Sabalenka full of praise for Clara Tauson after beating her in Melbourne - The defending champion came through 7-6 (5) 6-4 but Naomi Osaka pulled out of her match through injury.

Aryna Sabalenka cruises through as Coco Gauff battles into last eight - Sabalenka brushed aside Mirra Andreeva 6-1 6-2 for her 18th win in a row at Melbourne Park.

Belinda Bencic returned to the Round of 16 at the Australian Open after Naomi Osaka was forced to retire with an injury in the third round.

Coco Gauff rallied from a set down to beat Belinda Bencic 5-7 6-2 6-1 on Sunday to reach the quarter-finals of the Australian Open and extend her winning streak from the start of the season to nine matches.

The abdominal injury that caused Naomi Osaka to retire from the Auckland final with a one-set lead over Clara Tauson less than two weeks ago struck again Friday, forcing the four-time major champion to cut a promising Australian Open short.

Sabalenka's fourth-round challenge will be the 14th seed Mirra Andreeva, who she leads 3-1 in head-to-head record. Andreeva secured her first win against Sabalenka at the French Open quarterfinals last year.

World No.1 Aryna Sabalenka kicks off the second week of the Australian Open against teenager Mirra Andreeva, while Coco Gauff takes on Belinda Bencic for a spot in the quarterfinals.

The top seed is probably happy with her decision, because now she has to go up against Andreeva again, in a much bigger event. The last time these two played at a Slam, at Roland Garros in 2024, Andreeva pulled off an upset in three close sets.

A persistent abdominal injury started troubling Osaka during the first set of her match on Friday, with the 27-year-old calling for medical attention when up 6-5. WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Naomi Osaka forced to retire hurt at Australian Open. She played on until the end of the first set tiebreaker, which Bencic won, before calling it quits.

Two-time Australian Open champion Naomi Osaka stopped playing because of an injury after dropping the opening set of her third-round match against Belinda Bencic on Friday.

Four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka was forced to retire due to injury after one set on Friday, sending Belinda Bencic into the round of 16 with a 7-6(3) RET victory. Osaka,

Defending champion Aryna Sabalenka raced into the Australian Open quarter-finals while Coco Gauff recovered from a set down to defeat Belinda Bencic. Sabalenka had been pushed in her two previous matches by Jessica Bouzas Maneiro and Clara Tauson,