Australian Open: Wildcard Talia Gibson reaches second round

An Aussie wildcard has secured an upset win and maiden second-round berth at Melbourne Park as her opponent lost the plot.

Friends and family were blowing up her phone after a maiden grand slam victory, but Talia Gibson already had an eye on her formidable next opponent after a superb breakthrough win.

The 20-year-old Australian wildcard used the hot conditions to her advantage to overcome Turkish world No. 94 Zeynep Sonmez in three sets, but was staying away from her buzzing phone as she recovered ahead of a second-round showdown with No. 11 seed Paula Badosa.

Gibson advanced while fellow wildcard Maya Joint met an early exit in her Australian Open debut, starting brightly but fading dramatically to lose 6-3, 6-0 to world No. 7 Jessica Pegula.

It was a disappointingly swift exit for the 18-year-old Joint, who blasted past 2020 Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin on her way to a semi-final appearance at the Hobart International last week.

Aussie wildcard Talia Gibson got her serve into gear to push past Turkiye’s Zeynep Sonmez for her maiden grand slam victory at Melbourne Park. Picture: Cameron Spencer / Getty Images

Gibson said she “definitely” had room for improvement after a scratchy start against Sonmez, and was eager to show more of her ability in Wednesday’s clash against Badosa.

She dropped the first set 3-6 but held her nerve to win a second-set tie-break, which broke her opponent’s will before a 6-1 deciding set.

Sonmez repeatedly admonished herself during the tie-break as Gibson danced away to gain three set points, and her frustration boiled over after an unforced error in the third set as she slammed her racquet against her hip several times.

Gibson said she expected excitement rather than nerves to be at the forefront over the next 48 hours as she planned for the Spanish star coming off a career-best season on the WTA tour.

A frustrated Zeynep Sonmez was unable to break through for her first grand slam win after struggling under the Melbourne sun. Picture: Adam Dennis / AFP

“Honestly, I really don’t think (I’ll be nervous). I think it’s such an amazing opportunity. It’s not every day for me that I get the opportunity to play someone like (Badosa),” she said.

“I’m just really excited and looking forward to just giving it a crack and doing the best that I can … and hopefully bringing some good tennis.

“I don’t think it was my best tennis (against Sonmez), but that’s OK. I’ll keep working and get back out on the practice court, and hopefully I’ll bring some better tennis in the next round.”

The West Australian was taking a strict approach to her screen time even as congratulatory messages flowed in from the other side of the country.

“I actually haven’t looked at my phone once since the match – I’m just going to leave that until later and do everything I need to do recovery wise,” she said.

“I’ll prepare for the next match and then talk to the family members later on.”

Aussie qualifier Destanee Aiava was poised to begin her hard-earned first-round clash against Belgium’s Greet Minnen on Monday night.