What is the Australian Open ‘Netflix Curse’ and has it been broken this year?

At the 2023 Australian Open, a so-called 'Netflix Curse' rained down on the young stars of the Netflix special 'Break Point.'

Nine of the ten players featured in series one of the Netflix docu-series made early departures from the Australian Open, either being knocked out early or leaving due to injury.

Both series focus on the up-and-coming stars in tennis who have the job of taking the reins of the sport from Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, and Serena Williams.

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But last year, the young stars of the future couldn't get it done, showing the Netflix special is a potential poison chalice for players in the future.

Three of the nine players to get the 'Netflix Curse' were Nick Kyrgios, Paula Badosa, and Ajla Tomljanovic, who were all forced to pull out of the tournament before hitting a ball due to injury.

Men and women world number two's Casper Rudd and Ons Jabeur lost in the second round, while American number one Taylor Fritz joined them by losing his second matchup.

Greek star Maria Sakkari got past the second round last year but lost in the third round to China's Zhu Lin, and Italy's Matteo Berrettini was shocked after losing to Andy Murray.

With the release of the second series of 'Break Point' this week, the new players in the series may be wondering if the curse will strike back.

This series, the show includes Jessica Pegula, Alexander Zverev, Holger Rune, Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe, Tommy Paul, and Coco Gauff.

One positive for the players in Series Two is that none of them were injured before the tournament started, and all came through the first round unscathed.

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But is the curse fully gone? Not so fast. Some stars of the show couldn't break the 'Netflix Curse,' having shock second-round exits like some of their predecessors.

The fifth seed Jessica Pegula, was knocked out by unseeded Canadian Clara Burel in straight sets, fellow American Frances Tiafoe was also knocked out in straight sets to Tomas Machac and Dane Holger Rune was beaten by Arthur Cazaux.

However, some players are still fighting for their place in the first Grand Slam final of the year, with Taylor Fritz, Alexander Zverev, and Coco Gauff through to the quarterfinals.

Fritz and Zverev have blockbuster contests, with the American taking on GOAT Novak Djokovic and Zverev facing Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz.

Current US Open champion Coco Gauff is lighting the women's game up and faces Marta Kostyuk in the quarter-final, hoping to win a second slam in a row.

In comparison to series one of 'Breaking Point' on Netflix, this year's players have performed exceptionally better, with three players still in the hunt for the Grand Slam.

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