Eva Lys insisted she will look back on her run at the Australian Open with fondness despite falling to defeat against Iga Swiatek in the round of 16 on Monday.

Lys, who qualified for the first grand slam of the season as a lucky loser following Anna Kalinskaya's withdrawal, took her opportunity with both hands in Melbourne.

The German defeated Kimberly Birrell, Varvara Gracheva and Jaqueline Cristian on her way to the fourth round, but was then comfortably beaten 6-0 6-1 by Swiatek.

She became the first lucky loser to reach the women's singles fourth round at the Australian Open since the event moved to Melbourne Park in 1988.

Lys was also the first lucky loser to reach a grand slam fourth round in women's singles since Elina Avanesyan at the French Open 2023.

After a difficult few seasons, in which she revealed that she was close to walking away from the sport, Lys said her run in Melbourne was what dreams were made of.

"It's definitely, I think, the nicest week I've had in my life just because it wasn't really only about the result, but also about the whole story," Lys said.

"Getting in as a lucky loser at the last minute on the last day when it was possible, changing flights, winning the first time, winning the second time, making it to the top 100.

"This is the week I've been working for, for ages. I was always waiting for that moment.

"I've had a lot of nights where I was actually talking to my parents, often with tears, asking, When will the time come?

"Because I know I have the potential, but sometimes I was the only person that's really standing in my own way.

"Everything just came down to this week, where on one side it's definitely the tennis I played, but also it was luck in the beginning.

"It was just the momentum that made it so special. So I'm definitely enjoying every second I had here."

But Lys conceded that she was no match for Swiatek after going down in just 59 minutes at Rod Laver Arena.

The five-time major champion has dropped just 11 games in four matches so far, seven of which were lost in the first round to Katerina Siniakova.

Swiatek once again delivered another dominant display, striking 20 winners to Lys' seven. She also kept her unforced error tally at 18, compared to the German's 15.

Since 2020, no player has registered more wins in grand slam women's singles than Swiatek (82), and Lys knows she has a lot to improve on to reach the Pole's level.

"I think playing against a player like that, you realise that it doesn't matter how well the week is going, there's still a lot of work to do," Lys added.

"There are still a lot of things to improve. Looking back at the match, I see a lot of mistakes that I made that I could have done better.

"Especially in the right moments, I didn't have the right tactics. Obviously, it's a little tough since it's the first time on Rod Laver, but yeah, I'm taking this as an amazing experience.

"I had a lot of fun with the audience, with the fans, and it was an amazing week. Not the best way to end it, but definitely the best experience to do it with."