Jordan Thompson limps out of Australian Open with straight-sets defeat to Nuno Borges

Australia is left with just a single seed in the men’s draw at Melbourne Park after Jordan Thompson limped out of the tournament on Wednesday, losing his second round clash on John Cain Arena to world No 33 Nuno Borges.

The Portuguese was impressive in a 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 win under cloudy skies, but his victory was aided by a foot injury to Thompson which increasingly hampered him during the third set. By the end, the Sydneysider could barely walk, but said he was outplayed from the start.

“I was coming back, but I had a chance there,” he said, of two break points midway through the third set when pain appeared to worsen. “I barely won a point after the foot. I was getting outplayed before that anyway, but it’s disappointing because I did have a chance there.”

Thompson said that although he won his first round match, the injury was never out of his mind. The 30-year-old has been managing it with injections, but said he now must rest it until it’s fully healed. “That’s the most disappointing part,” he said. “If he had have beaten me … and I walk away with a healthy body, I’d be happier.”

Afterwards Borges expressed sympathy for the 27th seed, who is close to a career-high ranking but had to withdraw from lead-up tournaments in Brisbane and Adelaide due to the issue. “Jordan was playing amazing, I’m really sorry for finishing it this way, and I’m sure he was struggling throughout the match,” Borges said.

Despite the circumstances, the top-ranked Portuguese player was clearly happy with the result and shared his love for Melbourne. The 27-year-old made the fourth round in 2024, propelling him into a season that saw him reach the same stage at the US Open.

“It is the ‘happy slam’ for me, for sure,” Borges said. “It was for sure a breakthrough for me to play that well here [last year], and play best-of-five sets and learning how to deal with all this.”

Borges had to be told by the on-court interviewer he would be meeting Carlos Alcaraz in the third round. The Portuguese said he didn’t have high expectations. “I’ll try to keep the pressure on his side, and hopefully I can bring out the best tennis to try to mess with them a little bit,” he said.

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After three Australian seeds began the men’s singles at a grand slam for the first time since 2000, by Wednesday afternoon just one – Alex de Minaur – was remaining.

A sick and injured 25th seed Alexei Popyrin was eliminated on Tuesday night in four sets to Frenchman Corentin Moutet. Popyrin said afterwards he had injury niggles all week, and an illness forced him to the doctor for medical relief prior to the match.

On an inclement day in Melbourne, rain breaks have interrupted play and delayed the schedule. Five more Australians are due to complete their singles matches on Wednesday, headlined by the evening’s clash on John Cain Arena between Thanasi Kokkinakis and British 15th seed Jack Draper.

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