Australia’s Ajla Tomljanovic gets ‘massive’ comeback win, upsets rock Day 1 of US Open

Novak Djokovic has sent a brutal message to the US Open that he’s come to play, cruising into the second round.

5 min read

August 29, 2023 - 3:10PM

Aussie Daria Saville sets up Iga Swiatek showdown

Australia’s Ajla Tomljanovic has won her first grand slam match of the year, defeating Hungary’s Panna Udvardy 3-6 6-2 6-4 in the first round.

It was a welcome return for Tomljanovic, who missed the Australian Open, French Open and Wimbledon with injury.

“I teared up just watching her,” Jelena Dokic said on Channel 9.

“This is a big win, I’d say almost as big as a grand slam quarterfinal because she’s been out for nine months.

“To come out, get through your first win at a grand slam, this is massive.”

Daria Saville defeated American Clervie Ngounoue 6-0 6-2 in an impressive first round win, but it wasn’t such good news for fellow Aussies Storm Hunter and Kim Birrell, who lost their lost their first round matches.

Alja Tomljanovic won her first grand slam match of the year. Photo: Twitter.

But it won’t get any easier for the Aussie women in the second round, with Tomljanovic set to face fourth seed Elena Rybakina and Saville drawn to play World No. 1 Iga Swiatek.

On the men’s side, Rinky Hijikata beat Pavel Kotov 7-5 5-7 6-3 7-5.

Australia’s Rinky Hijikata is through to the second round. (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images)

Daria Saville also had an impressive win. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)

3pm - Novak sends brutal message to rivals

Novak Djokovic has sent shockwaves through the rest of the tournament, demolishing 84th-ranked Frenchman Alexandre Muller in just 94 minutes, 6-0, 6-2, 6-3.

He takes his first round record at Flushing Meadows to 17-0, hitting 32 winners and breaking Muller’s serve eight times.

The win will take him back to the top of the ATP rankings after the conclusion of the tournament on 11 September.

All business from Novak Djokovic in Round 1! pic.twitter.com/x4aP1kMSkr
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) August 29, 2023

12.30pm - US prodigy wins through

American Coco Gauff survived a scare to move into the second round, defeating Germany’s Laura Siegemund 3-6 6-2 6-4.

Gauff lost the first set but fought back, riding the wave of the home crowd at Arthur Ashe Stadium to claim victory.

There were some tense moments as the match dragged on, with Gauff serving quickly and expressing her frustration to the umpire about how long Siegemund was taking between points.

The match lasted 2 hours, 51 minutes and included a marathon 26-game in the second set.

Asked to describe the match, Gauff simply replied: “Slow.”

11.30pm - Unwanted history repeats for Aussie

Australia’s Alexei Popyrin is out of the US Open after he was defeated 6-3 6-4 3-6 6-3 by Switzerland’s Dominic Stricker.

It’s a brutal result for Popyrin, who was also knocked out of the first round at Wimbledon by Stricker, who will next face Stefanos Tsitsipas.

Alexei Popyrin has lost to the same player at consecutive grand slams. Clive Brunskill/Getty Images/AFP.

Upsets rock Day 1 of US Open

Danish fourth seed Holger Rune crashed out of the US Open on Monday, losing in four sets to Spanish journeyman Roberto Carballes Baena.

Rune, beaten in the quarter-finals of Wimbledon by Carlos Alcaraz, succumbed 6-3 4-6 6-3 6-2 in just under three hours.

Carballes Baena, a clay-court specialist ranked 63rd in the world who has never been further than the third round at a Grand Slam tournament, will face either Russia’s Aslan Karatsev or the Czech Republic’s Jiri Lehecka in the second round.

The defeat was the latest in a series of disappointing early exits for Rune, the 20-year-old regarded as one of the brightest young talents in men’s tennis.

Since his quarter-final loss to Alcaraz at Wimbledon, Rune has suffered first round losses at the Canadian Open, the Cincinnati Open and now the US Open.

The young Dane, who reached the third round of the US Open last year, had lashed out at organisers before this tournament, complaining about the decision to place his opening game on Court No. 5 of the USTA’s Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.

Against Carballes Baena on Monday, Rune was always struggling to find his rhythm, racking up 43 unforced errors and seeing his serve broken seven times by the 30-year-old Spaniard.

Maria Sakkari and Holger Rune were among the big names to fall on day one of the US Open. Pictures: AFP, Getty

Swiatek cruises as Sakkari falls

Iga Swiatek launched the defence of her US Open crown with an emphatic opening victory on as Novak Djokovic eyed a return to the top of the men’s world rankings on his long-awaited return to the tournament.

Swiatek, bidding to become the first woman to successfully defend the US Open title since Serena Williams won a hat-trick of titles from 2012-2014, needed less than an hour to defeat Sweden’s Rebecca Peterson 6-0 6-1.

The 22-year-old world number one from Poland overwhelmed her opponent with five breaks of serve and 20 winners to complete victory in just 58 minutes on the Arthur Ashe Stadium.

“I wanted to start the tournament with everything I was focusing on. I was happy to play a great game, with all the pressure and expectations I was happy on the court,” said Swiatek after her win.

Swiatek, targeting her fifth Grand Slam title, will face Daria Saville of Australia in round two.

While Swiatek advanced safely, there was no such luck for Greece’s eighth seed Maria Sakkari, who became the highest ranked casualty of early round action, beaten 6-4, 6-4 by Spain’s Rebeka Masarova, ranked 71st in the world.

Greece's Maria Sakkari hits a return to Spain's Rebeka Masarova. (Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY / AFP)

Eighteenth seed Victoria Azarenka of Belarus was among the first women to book their place in the second round, swatting aside French wildcard entrant Fiona Ferro 6-1, 6-2 in early play on Monday.

Tenth seed Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic also made it safely through, blowing away Australia’s Storm Hunter 6-4, 6-0.

Elsewhere in the women’s draw on Monday, US teenager Coco Gauff takes centrestage with a night game against German qualifier Laura Siegemund, looking for a breakthrough first major win.

The 19-year-old American arrives in New York in blistering form after winning titles in Washington and Cincinnati.

In the men’s draw meanwhile, all eyes will be on Djokovic as the Serbian star returns to the US Open for the first time since his defeat in the 2021 final.

Djokovic, chasing a record-extending 24th Grand Slam singles title in New York, opens his campaign with a night game on the Arthur Ashe main arena knowing that a victory will propel him back to world number one.

The 36-year-old, whose refusal to get vaccinated against Covid-19 prevented him from playing in the 2022 tournament, faces France’s world number 84 Alexandre Muller later Monday.

A victory will guarantee Djokovic returns to the top of tennis’s global rankings, regardless of how the rest of the US Open fortnight pans out.

He’s back. (Photo by Christophe ARCHAMBAULT / AFP)

Djokovic needs just 20 points to regain the No. 1 ranking after defeating current No. 1 and defending US Open champion Carlos Alcaraz in the Cincinnati Open earlier this month.

Alcaraz, who defeated Djokovic in a five-set Wimbledon final classic in July, opens his US Open campaign on Wednesday (AEST).

In early action in the men’s draw, 2020 US Open champion Dominic Thiem ended a miserable sequence of six consecutive first round exits at Grand Slam tournaments by defeating 25th seed Alexander Bublik of Kazakhstan in straight sets.

Thiem, whose career has been blown off course by wrist and knee injuries since his lone Grand Slam win three years ago, won 6-3 6-2 6-4.

“It took time to get my confidence back in my wrist, now I am back on track,” a delighted Thiem said in an on-court interview.

“I feel the game is back in place and a straight set victory today I couldn’t be happier.”

In other men’s matches on Monday, American 10th seed Frances Tiafoe and ninth seed Taylor Fritz open their campaign dreaming of ending the host nation’s two-decade long wait for a Grand Slam title.