Eva Lys advances to the fourth round of the Australian Open as a ‘lucky loser’ at Melbourne Park

Eva Lys makes a habit of canceling her flight from Melbourne, but with good reason.

After taking advantage of her opportunity as a ‘lucky loser’, the German has advanced to the fourth round of the Australian Open, where she will play second seed Iga Świątek.

Last Tuesday, Lys was given 10 minutes notice that she would compete in the first round of the main draw after 13th seed Anna Kalinskaya was a late withdrawal.

Lys had already booked her flight to leave the Victorian capital on Wednesday but seized the opportunity to defeat Australian qualifier Kim Birrell in straight sets.

A win over Varvara Gracheva in the second round followed before Lys – ranked 128 in the world – beat Jaqueline Cristian 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 in the last 32 on Saturday.

The win makes Lys the first lucky loser to reach the fourth round since the Australian Open was first contested at Melbourne Park in 1988.

She had advanced from the first round of a major only once in her previous five appearances.

Amidst the post-match celebrations, Lys realized she would have to change her departure plans again after booking a flight out on Sunday.

“We actually changed the flight to tomorrow,” Lys told reporters at Melbourne Park.

“Right now I think after the press conference we’ll go and try to change it a little bit further.

“It’s actually really fun. We just picked a date. We’re like, ‘Okay, Sunday is six days away. We just have to pick Sunday.’

“So, it’s actually pretty funny. I’m glad we’re going to change it now.”

Lys’ status as a lucky loser came about after she was eliminated in the final round of qualifying by Australian Destanee Aiava.

She was essentially on standby in case a player dropped out of the main draw, which occurred when Kalinskaya withdrew from the first round.

“It definitely doesn’t feel right to me right now,” Lys said.

“I don’t know when the realization will set in. It’s definitely just a great situation to be in, especially knowing that I was a lucky loser.

“I think I found a picture of me sleeping the day I came in (the head pull).

“I was just trying to spend the time at the venue trying to do something because I didn’t really know what to do with my time.

“I was just getting ready for my flight the next day. It’s definitely a crazy story … how it happened, how quickly it happened.

“It’s only been a few days. Those days have totally changed my life. So I’m definitely really grateful.”

Lys’ run to the fourth round means she will earn at least $420,000 from being included in the main draw.

Getting past former world number one Świątek will be a massive challenge, but Lys is relishing the chance to face the five-time major champion.

“I’m definitely really excited to play her. She’s a great player,” Lys said.

“I definitely look forward to matches like that. That’s why I play tennis. I’m definitely excited to come out and play her.”

Świątek was ruthless as she defeated 2021 US Open champion Emma Raducanu 6-1, 6-0 in their third-round meeting.