Novak Djokovic was set to make his eagerly anticipated return to the Grand Slam later Tuesday, following his ban and deportation last (function() ) There was also controversy off the court on day two after organisers banned Russian and Belarusian flags at Melbourne Park. MELBOURNE: Andy Murray rolled back the years to defeat 13th seed Matteo Berrettini in a five-set epic at the Australian Open on Tuesday, on a day when sweltering heat and then heavy rain played havoc. Olympic champion Belinda Bencic, ninth seed Veronika Kudermetova and 16th seed Anett Kontaveit all won in straight sets. The Belgian outlasted Spain's former Melbourne finalist Garbine Muguruza, who was cramping before losing 3-6, 7-6 (7/3), 6-1.
The 26th seed Elise Mertens was another winner. Sabalenka beat the Czech Republic's Tereza Martincova 6-1, 6-4. "I wasn't really doing that and he's going to kill me after the match," she joked.Ĭaroline Garcia and Aryna Sabalenka - fourth and fifth seeds respectively - had it easier as they swept into the second round.įrance's Garcia took just 65 minutes to overwhelm Canadian qualifier Katherine Sebov 6-3, 6-0 and cement her status as a contender for the first Grand Slam of the year. "I just tried to follow what my coach told me to do," she said of her turnaround in the third set. READ HERE | Australian Open 2023: Shaky Jabeur survives the first-round test The shaky Jabeur won the first set on a tiebreak, lost the second 6-4, then finally found her rhythm to clinch the decider 6-1. Tunisia's second seed Ons Jabeur, runner-up at Wimbledon and the US Open last year, was far from her fluent best but eventually defeated Slovenia's Tamara Zidansek. The women's draw threw up no real shocks. Moscow called the ban an "unacceptable politicisation of sports".ĪLSO READ | Ukrainian player wants Australian Open ban for Russian flag-wavers Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Russian and Belarusian players have normally competed under a neutral flag as independents, as is the case at the Australian Open. READ HERE | Australian Open bans flags from Russia, Belarus on site "The ban is effective immediately," said Tennis Australia. The red, white and blue stripes of Russia were seen Monday during at least two matches, with Ukrainian fans reportedly calling security and police to the stands. On Tuesday, Tennis Australia banned Russian and Belarusian flags after a complaint from the Ukrainian ambassador to Australia. Serbia's Djokovic was deported on the eve of last year's Australian Open because of his stance on Covid vaccines.īut the 35-year-old will be back when he faces Roberto Carballes Baena of Spain in his opener and looks likely to be given a warm reception by the Rod Laver Arena crowd. Ninth seed Holger Rune also won in straight sets. About 90 more minutes of play were lost.īritain's Dan Evans, Pablo Carreno Busta of Spain, Bulgaria's Grigor Dimitrov and Diego Schwartzman of Argentina all rolled into round two.Įighth-seeded Taylor Fritz of the United States defeated Nikoloz Basilashvili from Georgia, while 12th seed Alexander Zverev needed a fifth set before finally seeing off Juan Pablo Varillas. Play resumed on the outside courts about three hours later, only to be disrupted again in the evening when a storm hit, dumping torrential rain that forced players back into the locker room. The roofs were closed on the three main stadiums: Rod Laver Arena, Margaret Court Arena and John Cain Arena. The three-time major winner faces either Fabio Fognini or Thanasi Kokkinakis in round two.Īlso in the men's draw, Russia's fifth seed Andrey Rublev ended the tournament of 2020 finalist Dominic Thiem 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 in 36 degrees Celsius (96.8 Fahrenheit) temperatures.įormer US Open champion Thiem was outplayed as he continued his return from a wrist injury that kept him off the court for nine months across the 20 seasons.Īs the mercury rose, the heat forced play to be halted on outside courts.
"But right now unbelievably happy and proud of myself." "I will be feeling this evening and tomorrow," the former world number one, who plays with a metal hip after career-saving surgery, said. The Briton saved match point to defeat Italy's Berrettini 6-3, 6-3, 4-6, 6-7 (7/9), 7-6 (10/6) in 4hrs 49mins on Rod Laver Arena, where the roof was closed because of the extreme heat. The day looked set to belong to the 35-year-old Murray - and Melbourne's famously fickle weather.
0 kommentar(er)
