I didn’t hit very strong and I didn’t hit with good strength…I had many problems in this period before coming here, so I can say that I am a little bit down mentally because I was very sick home. In terms of a decorated tennis player and the biggest champion I’ve ever played, yeah, she definitely is.
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The 35-year-old didn’t strike her serve with authority – her average first-serve speed was less than 100mph – and she also struggled to match baseline blows with the in-form Konta.
Milos Raonic followed up his victory at the Brisbane International with a clinical, 6-1, 6-4, 6-4 first-round win over Lucas Pouille on the second day of the season’s first major. On the verge of retirement a couple of months ago, she chose to give the Australian Open one more try. But sooner or later, the aging champion with the debilitating disease may reach a breaking point if she no longer can beat the players she used to beat on a regular basis when she was No. 1.
Konta, though, did have earlier cause to be concerned about her assignment. “That’s why I’ve been playing really well”, Nishikori said.
“Whenever I step out on the court, whether it is at Wimbledon, whether it is here or in Wuhan or in Timbuktu, it really is just about enjoying where I am at that time and regardless of who I’m playing, to really knuckle down and take care of things on my end”.
Johanna Konta of Britain celebrates after defeating Venus Williams of the United States in their first round match at the Australian Open tennis championships in Melbourne, Australia, Tuesday, Jan. 19, 2016.
American Venus Williams, seeded eighth, takes a break during her…
Konta, who was born in Australia and moved to Great Britain at the age of 14, is, incredibly, now 4-2 against top-10 players.
He said the sport was sending mixed messages by allowing betting company William Hill to become one of the Australian Open’s sponsor’s this year and advertise on the tournament’s three main show courts.
Murray, who beat beat Alexander Zverev 6-1, 6-2, 6-3, said it was “hypocritical” that tournaments – the Australian Open’s official betting partner is William Hill – could be sponsored by betting companies while players can’t. “To win against a top-two player, I’m so happy, so excited”.
The 24-year-old jumped out to a 5-2 double-break lead to start, taking advantage of a Williams that was slow out of the gate.
It was a bright start on the other hand for Spaniard Garbine Muguruza at the Australian Open as she went on to win her First Round comfortably, beating Estonia’s Anett Kontaveit 6-0, 6-4 in a match that lasted exactly an hour.
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And it was one the world number 47 did not see coming, having lost in the first round at her two warm-up tournaments. Though Venus put up a mini come-back, that wasn’t enough with Konta wrapping the match 6-2 in the Second Set. She is confident, sure-footed in the shot and single-minded under pressure, owner of a game built on the solid foundation of a reliable and penetrative serve.
