Christopher O'Connell has burst onto the tennis scene following a stellar start to the Australian Open 2022.
The world No. 175 hails from Sydney, Australia, and has had the majority of his career thus far hampered by injuries.
Here is everything you need to know about the 27-year-old.
Career overview
Christopher O'Connell made his professional tennis debut in 2011.
Injuries immediately impacted his young career, with the Australian taking a 22-month hiatus from the professional scene.
2016 was a turning point, however, with O'Connell claiming five ITF Futures titles in Australia and Europe.
He made his ATP World Tour debut at the Sydney International in January 2017, followed up by receiving a wildcard for the Australian Open later that month.
A knee injury hampered his 2018 season, limiting him to only 24 matches during the year.
His next career milestone came in 2019 when O'Connell won his first Challenger Tour title in Cordenons, Italy.
He also won his first grand slam match the next year, defeating Laslo Djere at the 2020 US Open.
2021 saw the Australian put himself on notice in the tennis world when he defeated No. 2 seed Jannik Sinner at the Atlanta Open.
O'Connell's career-best grand slam results are second round appearances at the US Open in 2020 and the Australian Open in 2021.
Australian Open 2022
O'Connell has enjoyed a stunning start to his Australian Open campaign this year.
He defeated 21-year-old Frenchman Hugo Gaston in the first round before upsetting world No. 13 Diego Schwartzman in the second round.
The straight-sets victory over the Argentinian is O'Connell's first time beating a top-20 ranked opponent in his career.
Who will O'Connell play next?
Christopher O'Connell has progressed through to the third round of the Australian Open where he'll take on unseeded American Maxime Cressy.
The match is set to be played at approximately 4pm on Saturday.
Career prize money
The Australian has earned a total of AUD$1,042,392 million in prize money throughout his career.
He will add to his total after the Australian Open, having already pocketed AUD$221,000 following his second round victory.
