Australian Open 2021 day nine: Hsieh Su-wei v Naomi Osaka – live!

First set: Hsieh Su-wei* 1-1 Naomi Osaka (denotes server) Hsieh, who has never before been this deep at a grand slam, is known for her unpredictability and she throws up a bit of funky stuff on her first service game today. All good for the Tawainese so far.

First set: Hsieh Su-wei 0-1 Naomi Osaka* (denotes server) Okey dokey, here we go then. And it’s not an ideal start for No 3 seed Osaka, who is forced to save an early break point (with a well-timed ace), but she gets there in the end thanks to a couple of wayward baseline shots from Hsieh. Hsieh, at 35, is not the oldest player left in the draw (Serena Williams is 39) but she is an experienced campaigner who should give Osaka plenty to think about today.

Of course, there are still no fans in the stands today – and at least until Thursday – as we await clearance from the Victorian government to lift the snap lockdown imposed from Friday last week. And with two new locally acquired cases reported today, things it would seem are still very much in the balance. We shall see.

To the action! Osaka will serve first. Ready? Play.

Here come the players onto Rod Laver Arena, both sporting hats and face masks. Osaka supplements her headgear with a pair of headphones. There’s a high of 27C in Melbourne today and it’s partially cloudy over Melbourne Park. In short, more perfect playing conditions.