Australian Open 2020: Rafael Nadal breezes into third round; Taylor Fritz wins from two sets down against Kevin Anderson

Melbourne: Rafael Nadal had a scary moment in his second-round win over Federico Delbonis — when his wayward forehand hit a ballkid in the head. He gave her a kiss on the cheek and apologized. After the match he gave her his headband before saluting the crowd. “Have been one of the more scary moments I’ve had on the tennis court — the ball was quick, and straight on (her) head,” he said. ”I was so scared for her. Very happy that you’re good. You’re very brave, so well done." [caption id=“attachment_7947931” align=“alignnone” width=“825”] Rafael Nadal celebrates after defeating Federico Delbonis in second round singles match at the Australian Open. AP[/caption] Nadal’s 6-3, 7-6 (4), 6-1 victory was tough. He dropped only 10 games in three previous wins over the left-handed Argentine. The first two games on Rod Laver Arena took 18 minutes, with Nadal missing six breakpoint chances before Delbonis held for 1-1. The top-ranked Nadal converted one of nine breakpoint chances in the 1st set and none of nine in the second, but converted two from two in the third. He’ll next play fellow Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta, who beat Peter Gojowczyk of Germany. Taylor Fritz completes turnaround in five-set classic against Kevin Anderson Taylor Fritz’s 4-6, 6-7 (5), 7-6 (4), 6-2, 6-2 comeback victory over two-time Grand Slam finalist Kevin Anderson means five United States’ players will be in the third round of Australian Open for the first time since 2008. The 29th-seeded Fritz has never been further at a major tournament. This was the second time in his career that he has managed to win a match in five sets after dropping the opening two. He joined American men John Isner, Sam Querrey, Tenny Sandgren and Tommy Paul in the round of 32. Isner won in straight sets Thursday and next faces three-time major champion Stan Wawrinka, while Fritz will play No. 5-seeded Dominic Thiem. The other trio advanced Wednesday. Querrey and Sandgren meet each other Friday for a berth in the fourth round, while Paul will play Marton Fucsovics of Hungary. Wawrinka, the 2014 Australian Open champion, defeated Andreas Seppi 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4. Nick Kyrgios roars into third round with four-set victory Nick Kyrgios composed himself after a third-set lapse in which he lost five straight games to beat Gilles Simon 6-2, 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 and advance to the third round at the Australian Open. Kyrgios led by two sets and 4-2 before the veteran French player rallied and took the match to a fourth set, heightening the tension for a parochial crowd at Melbourne Arena. When he finally set up triple match point with his 27th ace, No. 23-seeded Kyrgios put his finger to his ear to indicate he wanted to hear more noise and the crowd responded with a raucous cheer. Two points later, he closed with another ace, turned around to face the crowd behind the baseline and let out a scream. The mercurial Australian has pledged $200 to bushfire relief for every ace he serves this month, and so the tally is mounting. Dominic Thiem holds nerves in thrilling victory over Alex Bolt Two-time French Open finalist Dominic Thiem broke local wildcard entry Alex Bolt’s serve in the third game of the fifth set and advanced to the third round with a 6-2, 5-7, 6-7 (5), 6-1, 6-2 win. Seventh-seeded Alexander Zverev also advanced about the same time with a 7-6 (5), 6-4, 7-5 win over Egor Gerasimov. Zverev has pledged $10,000 toward the bushfire recovery effort in Australia for every match he wins in Australia, and promised to donate his full prize money if he claims his first major title this year in Australia. Zverev had plenty of support on Rod Laver Arena. Fifth-seeded team had to deal with a partisan crowd on another covered court at Melbourne Arena, but enjoyed the occasion. “It was a tough match. Alex played great, with great crowd support. Great fun," Thiem said. “”It’s nice to play with such atmosphere. Daniil Medvedev survives nose bleed to beat Pedro Martinez Fourth-seeded Daniil Medvedev needed a medical timeout for a nose bleed before beating Spanish qualifier Pedro Martinez 7-5, 6-1, 6-3 and advancing to the third round. The US Open finalist called for a medical timeout while leading 5-0 in the second set and needed treatment to stop the bleeding. Medvedev fended off four breakpoint chances to hold in the sixth game of the third set, and finished off strongly.