By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Monday January 16, 2022
It was a wild, wonderful Day 1 at the Australian Open - catch up on the highlights here...
Photo Source: Getty
The happy Slam kicked off on Monday in Melbourne, with top seeds from the top half in action. Here are some of our observations from a whirlwind day of tennis that featured Nadal, Swiatek and so much more!
More Aussie Open Day 1: Kyrgios Pulls Out, Surgery Next | Juncheng Shang Makes History for China | Raducanu Looks Ahead to Gauff Clash | Andreescu Believes Her Time is Coming Again
American women fast out of the gates
Festivities kicked off at 11 AM in Melbourne Park, and by 12 noon it was already clear that Team USA was going to have a big impact on the women’s draw, particularly in the top half. To be fair, we knew that beforehand, but even so…
Third-seeded Jessica Pegula romped 6-0, 6-1 over Jaqueline Cristian, and seventh-seeded Coco Gauff appeared to be headed for a rapid fire beatdown as well, but she needed to rally from a break down and then failed to convert six match points in the second set against the feisty Katerina Siniakova before moving through.
It was even more difficult for last year’s runner-up Danielle Collins, the No.13 seed, who needed over three hours to get past Russia’s Anna Kalinskaya (and injured her knee in the process). Injury scare aside (more on that down the page) it was a good day for the American women in the top half. We’ll be keeping a close eye on them all week, as all three stand to match up with Polish juggernaut Iga Swiatek in the second week (Collins, R16 | Gauff, QF | Pegula SF if seeds hold).
Nadal gets it done
It was a bit of a wild ride for Rafael Nadal, who dropped the second set against Jack Draper and never really looked like his menacing self as he swerved to a 7-5 2-6 6-4 6-1 victory. But a win is a win is a win.
Even Nadal said so: “I need a victory, so that's the main thing. Doesn't matter the way,” he said. Even better when it ties you for third on the ATP’s all-time win list. Nadal (1,068) can move into sole possession of third if he defeats Mackenzie McDonald in the second round on Wednesday.
Jerry Shang History Maker
The 17-year-old Chinese (aka Shang Juncheng) had already turned heads just by making his way through the qualifying draw in Melbourne, but Shang took it a step further on Monday in Melbourne by notching a 6-2 6-4 6-7(2) 7-5 victory over Oscar Otte to become the first Chinese male to ever notch a main draw victory at the Australian Open.
“I'm a little surprised that I came this fast, but at the same time, I think it's all the hard work from my team and myself that paid off,” Shang, who turns 18 on February 2, said on Monday. “I think I'm just nothing else but excited about what's coming next.
Kyrgios - "I'll be Back"
After the devastating news came from Nick Kyrgios that he'd be missing the Australian Open and requiring surgery due to a torn meniscus and a cyst that is aggravating the area, the Aussie took to Twitter to let fans know he's planning on a speedy recovery:
Vika the Soccer Mom
Victoria Azarenka has been wearing a Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) football shirt of late, and a reporter wanted to know more about it. That started the two-time Aussie Open champion on a long explananation of her time as a soccer mom. Azarenka revealed that she is a mad fan of her son Leo, who has taken up the beautiful game.
"My son is, Leo is extremely into football now. I call it football. He calls it soccer. We have this debate. He wants to play in Paris Saint-Germain," Azarenka said. "That's his dream. That's like, it's pretty good. He saw me wearing the shirt. He will wear the shirt, same thing so we were matching.
"I'm a soccer mom now, you know, and I love that. I love supporting -- I'm obnoxious, like absolutely the most obnoxious. I yell, but I'm very positive, which is, you know, I'm actually very proud, because it's like it's a completely different emotion for me to support my son. I have no shame of screaming for him, like zero. But I'm very supportive. I want him to do well. I want him to achieve his dreams. It's been quite an experience for me just to go to his games, for example.
"So, yeah, I actually even asked him, 'Leo, do you like when mommy supports you?' He goes, 'Yeah, I love it, Mom.'
'Am I not too loud?' He goes, 'Well, sometimes, but it's okay. I like it.'"
Gadecki, Backed by Barty, Wins Big
Australian wild card Olivia Gadecki notched her maiden main draw win at major, the World No.199 notching a 7-5, 6-1 over qualifier Polina Kudermetova. Gadecki will get extra attention at this year’s happy Slam due to the fact that she’s being mentored by last year’s champion Ash Barty.
“She sent me a text after my match, which really meant a lot,” said Gadecki, who faces Marta Kostyuk in the second round. “But I'm sure everyone kind of knows she's always been in my corner, and I'm so lucky to have her. Whenever I need advice or anything, I'm always able to contact her.”
Reportedly three-time champion Barty, who is currently pregnant, will be present in Melbourne later in the tournament.
2022 runner-up struggles with a knee injury but fights through
We mentioned Danielle Collins earlier in the diary, but we’ll spend a bit more time on her here because her match was newsworthy. Collins was able to battle past Kalinskaya 7-5, 5-7, 6-4, but not before having an issue with her left knee.
Is it serious? Hard to say, as Collins saw the trainer in the first set and still was able to grind out the victory in three.
Here’s what she said about it after the match:
“I played a couple of these matches recently and didn’t pull out the win in those,” the American said. “Anytime you're on the court playing three hour matches, you especially want to win – putting in that much effort. I just needed to push through the hurdle a little bit. Definitely had a scare there in the first set with an injury so, not what you're wanting to kind of be dealing with in the first round of a tournament, I was able to work through it and the physios were able to really help me.
“I was kind of just counting my lucky stars because it really wasn't a good start for me and the finish, it was tough.
Nike debuts some strange patterns, and Tiafoe steals the show in them
France’s Tiafoe’s so bright, we gotta wear shades. The American is loving his new Nike kit and, judging from the buzz on Twitter, it seems that people are enjoying it as well. Sounds like a win-win.
Here’s what we’re talking about:
And here’s what Frances says about it: “I went to Nike distro and they said we got something really cool for you for at the Australian Open so I saw it and I was like ‘Yeah definitely gonna rock this.’ I could have rocked something more calm, but I was like no, this is definitely me.”
Draper Sabotaged by his body - yet again
Jack Draper had the experience of a lifetime on Day 1, facing Rafael Nadal on Rod Laver Arena, but things quickly went from dreamy to downright miserable as the British phenom suffered from cramping from the third set onward.
Who knows what might have happened if the hard-hitting southpaw wasn’t struggling so much physically? He had taken the second set from the defending champ and was in control of the run of play at times against Nadal in set three, his confidence building.
“Playing Grand Slam tennis, you've got to be out there, especially playing someone like Rafa, for hours and hours and hours,” the disappointed Brit said after his loss. “I feel like if you're not cramping, then that's fine. The pains of playing high-level tennis on the body is tough. But when you start cramping, it becomes almost impossible, in all honesty.
“I've never been on court with Rafa before. The second set, I sort of calmed down and started playing really well. Yeah, if I would have carried on that way, who knows. But, again, it's just the cramp thing…”
Djokovic still nursing the Hammy
Novak Djokovic - he of the nine Australian Open men's singles titles - delayed his practice on Monday, according to Serbia journalist Sasa Ozmo, then showed up with tape on his left hamstring.
Nothing new to see here, the issue popped up during his match with Daniil Medvedev at Adelaide two weeks ago. He was able to win that title without too much struggle, but Djokovic also cut short a practice with Medvedev earlier in the week against Medvedev. It's an issue, we have to report it. Now, for the important question, will it affect his performance? Only time will tell... Djokovic faces Spain's Roberto Carballes Baena on Tuesday in Melbourne.
Where’s my racquet?
At one point during his first-round match on Monday Nadal realized that the ball boy had mistakenly taken his racquet and sent it off to be strung. It was a funny moment that quickly gained traction on social media.