The Score at the Australian Open: Tennis’ new power couple, Tinder’s Open workout
Has a new love blossomed at Melbourne Park? The answer is yes. The Score can reveal flamboyant Frenchman Gael Monfils and Ukrainian beauty Elina Svitolina. IT’S ALL IN THE SCORE.
Tennis
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Elina Svitolina has stormed into the third round of the Australian Open, but the spotlight was on the fellow tennis star watching her play as much as her match.
The Ukranian No.6 seed confirmed Frenchman Gael Monfils was “supporting” her after he was sitting in her players’ box during her second-round win over Slovakian Viktoria Kuzmova.
“Everyone saw him, so ... he is supporting me,’’ Svitolina said when asked about Monfils watching on.
“Hopefully we’ll see him many more in the future, not only in my box but on the court as well.’’
Svitolina, a quarterfinalist at Melbourne Park last year, cruised to a comfortable straight sets win (6-4 6-1) over Kuzmova, wrapping up the second set in just 25 minutes.
“I was trying to to put one extra ball over the net, I was trying to move really quick and be light on my feet, so I think this was the key today,’’ Svitolina said.
“I played really confident all the match, so I am very pleased with the performance today.’’
Svitolina said she had taken plenty of confidence into the new season after her win in the WTA final in Singapore last year.
“It was amazing for me to win that event, being undefeated and play some tough matches,’’ she said.
“It was something that definitely brought me lots of confidence and showed that I can play at the really high level all the week, so I just tried to transfer this to the grand slam.’’
MATTEK-SANDS BRING FLAVOUR TO OPEN
She’s called the Lady Gaga of tennis and Bethanie Mattek-Sands is more than happy to embrace the nickname.
Writing on the PlayersVoice website, the American explained how she thrived being labelled the rock star of the women’s game.
“I don’t know who first called me the Lady Gaga of tennis. It just kind of caught on,” Mattek-Sands said.
“Back in 2011, one of Lady Gaga’s fashion designers, Alex Noble, designed a tennis ball dress for me for the Wimbledon player party at Kensington Gardens. When I met with him, I basically said, ‘Give me some craziness that you would do for Lady Gaga and I’ll wear it on the red carpet’.
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“That’s what we came up with. It was a lot of fun. It was cool to see that creative process. When I find a place in my new home, I’m going to put it on display.
“I’ve also been called America’s tennis rock star. I like both names! I feel like I add a little bit of funk and uniqueness and originality to the tour.
“Everyone jokes in the locker-room that ‘If we just go silent, we’ll hear you laugh and know where you are. We won’t even need to look’.”
“A lot of girls have tattoos now, but I was probably one of the first to have tattoos that were visible on the court. I had coloured hair. I wore different outfits. I guess I’ve always been a bit of a rebel. It’s my personality.”
Mattek-Sands has just launched her own fastion line at the Open although her outfit named ‘Love Down Under’ didn’t work as she lost to Australian wild card Zoe Hives in the opening round.
TINDER GETTING A FAIR WORKOUT
They call the Australian Open the “Happy Slam” and it’s not just the players who endorse that name.
It seems the dating app Tinder gets a fair work-out when the tennis world converges on Melbourne Park.
A quick investigation by a producer from Macquarie Radio came acroos some interesting results.
They found at least 12 coaches on Tinder who were rolling with the up to 38 years of age and within 40 kilometres of Melbourne category.
There wasn’t much left to the imagination with what the lads were searching for with their profiles including FWB (Friends with Benefits), NSA (No Strings Attached) and ONS (One Night Stand Only).
One feel-good story from Tinder involves colourful American Bethanie Mattek-Sands.
When quizzed about how her doubles partnership with Dutch woman Demi Schuurs came about, she said: “We’re both on Tinder and we both swiped right!”
THE BABY TAKING OVER THE TOURNAMENT
Qai Qai is in the house.
The “granddaughter” of Serena Williams and Alexis Ohanian is the doll, or “daughter and best friend” of Williams’ daughter Olympia – a powerful symbol that Serena says is a tool to “teach her love”.
“I wanted her to have a black doll. Growing up, I didn’t have that many opportunities to have black dolls,” Williams said this week.
“And I was just thinking, like, I want her first doll to be black. And her heritage, obviously she’s mixed, she’s Caucasian and black, but I feel like that was her first doll and I said her second doll would be Caucasian.
“I definitely want to always teach her love and teach her … that humans should always have love for each other, no matter what colour they are.”
The doll has its own Twitter and Instagram accounts, @RealQaiQai with more than 100,000 followers combined.
American Sloane Stephens said she was yet to come across the doll, which has so far been snapped sunning herself alongside the Yarra, watching Williams on Rod Laver Arena and reading up on “Australia’s Dangerous Creatures for Dummies” in Chinatown.
It also “took over” the official WTA Instagram account.
“I have literally never seen it,” Stephens said on Wednesday.
“I do know about the doll, but I’ve never seen it. Maybe one day, she’ll just like show up in the lockerroom.”
Port, forever ...
They may have parted ways but Darren Cahill’s influence on No.1 seed Simona Halep still lives on when it comes to AFL.
Halep confirmed she was still a Port Adelaide supporter despite the recent split with her former coach although her knowledge of the game is still sketchy.
“I don’t understand anything. We were watching in the lobby with Darren, all the team, supporting the guys,” Halep said.
“I’ve been in Adelaide. I’ve been there at the club. I met the team. Also the club, it was really nice, good facilities for them. Very professional.
“I really was enjoying the time there. I supporting them with all my heart.”
After deciding to spend more time at home which was the reason for the amicable parting of ways with Halep, Cahill was last month appointed to Port Adelaide’s board.
GRAND
We might be showing our age but Marcos Baghdatis making his way through to the final in 2006 was one of the great times in this city. The Greeks and Cypriots went crazy and it was a souvlaki frenzy for everyone. That’s why the emergence of Stefanos Tsitsipas is seriously exciting.
SLAM
Journos presenting players with gifts. One well known American scribe, who the night before had a crack at the Aussie media during the Nick Kyrgios press conference, had the locals frowning again when he made a cringeworthy presentation to Sloane Stephens who was as surprised as anyone with the strange gesture.
THE TWEET
Just one of many extraordinary things I saw in Melbourne Arena on Monday night. pic.twitter.com/Jc8gf8j6DP
— judy murray (@JudyMurray) January 15, 2019
Being the mother of the one of the world’s best players, Judy Murray would have had to deal with a fair share of enthusiastic fans.
But even she was taken aback when confronted by this tattoo of her son kissing the Wimbledon trophy which was etched on the back of a middle-aged woman.
WE love a realist.
British qualifier Daniel Evans gave more than many thought he would against Roger Federer and throughout he didn’t lose his humour.
When a baby decided to start crying in Rod Laver Arena, Evans paused and asked Federer: “Are you OK?”
“I’m happy if you are,” was the response.
Then Evans delivered some gold: “I’ll be the one running so . . . “
That drew a smile from defending champion: “If you’re ready, we’ll play.”
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