Australians have had a strong start to the, with four of seven players advancing to the second round.
Australian men
Alexei Popyrin (no.28) beat former world no.52 South Korea’s Soon-woo Kwon in straight sets (7-5, 6-2, 6-3). Popyrin is in the form of his life after winning his first ATP 1000 title in Montreal earlier this month.
He will play unseeded Spaniard Pedro Martínez in the second round. The 25-year-old is on a collision course with defending champion Novak Djokovic. If both players make it to the third round, it would be the third time Popyrin has faced Djokovic at a grand slam this year.
Your contribution ensures The Daily Aus can continue doing the work you love.
I want to give $10 monthly to help TDA keep doing the news.
Your details:
While Adam Walton lost his first-round match to France’s Alexandre Müller, Rinky Hijikata upset former world no.21 Alejandro Davidovich Fokina of Spain. Hijikata prevailed in four sets (7-6, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3). He will play the tournament’s ninth seed Grigor Dimitrov in the second round.
Australian women
Ajla Tomljanović won her first-round match in straight sets, defeating American Ann Li (6-4, 6-4). In the second round, she will play Belgium’s Elise Mertens, a successful doubles player with a career-high singles ranking of no.12.
18-year-old Maya Joint is through to the second round at her first-ever grand slam after beating 36-year-old German Laura Siegemund (6-4, 7-5). Joint now faces a tough assignment in 14th-seededMadison Keys on Thursday.
