Australian Open: Learner Tien becomes youngest man in last 16 since Nadal

American qualifier Learner Tien, youngest man in 20 years to reach Australian Open fourth round, continues fairytale run.

American qualifier Learner Tien became the youngest man to reach the Australian Open fourth round in 20 years as he beat an ailing Corentin Moutet 7-6(10) 6-3 6-3 on Saturday (January 18, 2025), continuing the teenager's fairytale run at Melbourne Park.

Less than two months after his 19th birthday, world number 121 Tien already had the more experienced Moutet's measure before the French world number 69 was hit with trouble in his upper left leg in the late afternoon clash at Kia Arena.

Tien's win in the battle of lefthanders came two days after he pulled off the upset of the tournament by beating former U.S. Open champion and three-times finalist Daniil Medvedev in a five-set thriller.

The Californian is the youngest man to get to the fourth round since an 18-year-old Rafa Nadal in 2005.

"It feels great, obviously," said Tien, who will face unseeded Italian Lorenzo Sonego for a place in the quarter-finals.

"This exceeded my expectations coming into this week, you expect to win every match but to be in the second week is amazing."

A number of teenagers have impressed at Melbourne Park, with Brailian Joao Fonseca and Czech Jakub Mensik also bundling out top 10 seeds.