By Ian Ransom MELBOURNE (Reuters) -French flair topped American firepower as Gael Monfils turned back the clock to dump fourth seed Taylor Fritz out of the Australian Open on Saturday and celebrate his place in the last 16 with a dance on court.

Gaël Monfils's legion of fans is daring to dream big, but the evergreen Frenchman is focused on other priorities than lifting the trophy at Melbourne Park.

Gael Monfils has joined Roger Federer as the only men to reach the Australian Open’s fourth round at age 38 or older since the tournament field expanded to 128 players in 1988.

MELBOURNE, Australia — World No. 4 and U.S. Open finalist Taylor Fritz is out of the Australian Open after Gael Monfils continued his vintage run through the tournament. Fritz took the first set 6-3, but from thereafter Monfils took control, prevailing 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (1), 6-4.

Frenchman Monfils is only the second player aged 38 or over, after Roger Federer, to make the last 16 in Melbourne since 1988. He is enjoying quite the start to 2025 after becoming the oldest ever winner of an ATP Tour singles title in Auckland last weekend.

Ivo Karlovic holds the ATP Tour record, having won through to final in Pune, India in 2019 at the age of 39 years, 311 days. Monfils edges Stan Wawrinka who was aged 38 years and 124 days when he reached the final at Umag, Croatia in 2023.

French flair topped American firepower as Gael Monfils turned back the clock to dump fourth seed Taylor Fritz out of the Australian Open on Saturday and book a place in the last 16. At 38, Monfils is

Gael Monfils rallied from a set down to claim a thrilling 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (1), 6-4 win over American Taylor Fritz in a third-round match at the Australian Open.

Here’s everything you need to know about tuning into the Taylor Fritz vs. Gael Monfils match, along with the full tournament schedule, where to stream the Australian Open, how to watch matches for free and more.