Let's just point out that when I said that the Day 1 day session provided solid, but not overly exciting, tennis, I was tempting fate. The night session was any tennis fan's dream, with the top two youngest Australian up-and-comers involved in incredible five-setters each. We'll have more on them later, but Thanasi Kokkinakis and Nick Kyrgios are both future stars who provided viewing delight last night. And on Day 2, Stanislas Wawrinka and Novak Djokovic marched the first step towards a rematch of last year's epic with ease.

Honor Roll:

Ivo Karlovic (defeated Ruben Bemelmans 64 62 64)- Karlovic lost four points on his first serve all match and only eight on second serves. When you win 83% of the points on your own serve and break your opponent four times, you're going to win. If Ivo is serving like this against top players, we could see an upset or at least a major scare here.

Kei Nishikori (defeated Almagro 64 76 62)- Nishikori looked a little more conservative on court than usual, but that's okay against a player like Almagro. Injury has caused Almagro's ranking to plummet recently, but he is still a tough opponent for anyone. Kei handled it with ease and didn't even seem to exert himself too much. He reached the final of his last Grand Slam, and you can bet that he's dreaming of going one step farther this time.

David Ferrer (defeated Bellucci 67 62 60 63)- Thomaz Bellucci is a tough opponent for anyone when he is playing well. He was nowhere near his top level in this match, but he held serve in that first set and took it in a tiebreak. After that, though, Ferrer stepped up his game. Last year might have reminded everyone that Ferrer doesn't really have the talent to win a Grand Slam without a lot of help from the draw, but this match should remind us that he rarely loses to anyone he isn't supposed to. He will be a very tough out for anyone, and a likely fourth-round match with Nishikori looms.

Lost Their Homework

Fabio Fognini (lost to Alejandro Gonzalez 64 26 36 46)- Fognini is known for turning in disinterested and disappointing performances sometimes, but this may take the cake. Gonzalez just sat back and solidly kept balls in play while Fognini self-destructed. Seventy-seven unforced errors doesn't even begin to tell the story of this. Fognini can be very entertaining when he wants to be, but sometimes he wants the exact opposite. Do better next time, please.

Feliciano Lopez (defeated Kudla 36 62 46 62 10-8)- Lopez is now a top-15 player and the No. 12 seed at a Grand Slam. And, with all due respect to Denis Kudla, Feli has to do better than this. He wasn't comfortable on court for most of the match. His first serve was very effective, but he only got it in play 57% of the time. Kudla is moving better and making his way up, but he should be fodder for top players right now, not providing fifth-set drama.

Match of the Day:

How do I choose between the two enthralling Aussie matches mentioned above? (I know, I know, they're both from Day 1, but I'm being liberal with this whole previous night plus next day thing.) Neither match was particularly high-quality, but both contained some great shot-making and were tense until the end. Also, more importantly, both matches contained a lot of potential meaning for a young player's future.

Let's start with Kokkinakis, who took out a much better opponent in Ernests Gulbis. The 18-year-old is flying up the rankings, and this is his biggest win to date. He had the ups-and-downs that all growing players will have in a match like this, but the poise he showed in the fifth set (saving six break points, four of which were match points) was nothing short of astounding. He will be something special, and this night will probably go down as his breakout performance.

Kyrgios already had his breakout performance, beating Rafael Nadal at Wimbledon last year. Australia needs to see some deep runs by home-grown players, something they have sorely lacked for a very long time. It has been a full decade since an Aussie has reached the final (Lleyton Hewitt in 2005). Now, Kyrgios isn't going to be reaching the final here this year, but it is always important when a player can gut out a tough win in a pressure situation. The crowd certainly helped Kyrgios here as the match went deep into the night, and the raucous Aussie fans certainly enjoyed it. He lost his second-round match in his first career five-setter here last year. Making up for that with a five-set win this year could be an important moment for the youngster.