AO Day 1: Rafa, Roger Resplescendent

Hi All. Galileo here.

The Aussie Open has started again. The happy slam features Lleyton Hewitt and Ash Barty. She was born in April 1996, less than two years before Hewitt played his first match. That was in Adelaide.

Rafa Nadal, with the usual lingering injury concerns, survived another first round. The big news, however, comes from Scotland.

Andy Murray, long-term BACKSPIN, foil appeared in five finals here. He lost to Roger Federer in 2010, in straight sets. He lost to Nole in 2011 in straight sets. He also lost to the Serbian in 2013 and 2015-16. None of those were classics but Murray has been a constant at this slam, a mainstay. He is the only man to make five finals at a slam and never win it.

Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut won through in their 1st Rounder match 6-4, 6-4, 6-7[5], 6-7[4], 6-2. It is already a candidate for match of the year. The commentators should have done better. They were blaming Murray’s hip for every miss, every mistake. That included a routine drive volley. It was typical Muzza. Grit and toil and awful drop shots. It is incredible that he is finished, with only a handful of matches left in him while Federer still has a chance to win slams.

We also had the first men’s Greek match-winner ever. Stefanos Tsitsipas rolled past Matteo Berretini in four 6-7[4], 6-4, 6-3, 7-6[4]. He will play Victor Troicki next. The woman who won matches here, in mixed, singles and doubles, was Eleni Danilidou. Todd can tell you all about her. [Hint: she once had a big win over Justine Henin]


*SUICIDE POOL PICKS*
MS 1st Rd: CORIC [11] d. [PR] DARCIS
==
WS 1st Rd: MUGURUZA [18[ D. ZHENG


RLA: NADAL D. DUCKWORTH
If Nadal had wanted a 2 and a quarter hour test to really get him warmed up he will be delighted. If, however, he wanted to cruise through the first few rounds and try to get healthy he will be disappointed. He was pushed but eventually came through against his homegrown opponent 6-4, 6-3, 7-5. Aided by Duckworth’s 11 doubles and 40-40 winner/error mark the Spaniard managed to edge through. Nadal’s 38-11 mark is really good and winning 59% of his second serve is a solid start, as well. It’s clear that magic forehand is still working just as it always has. Matty Ebden is next. That should pose no problem but 27th seed Alex De Minaur lurks. The youngster has a lot of grind, will get the crowd behind him and has nothing to lose. It’s a really big banana skin for the 2nd seed.

RLA: FEDERER D. ISTOMIN
If you are a tennis nut you will have experienced watching the sport with the casual viewer. This BACKSPINNER had to remind his room-mate to never ever try to play like Roger. You just end up looking foolish. He wrapped up the opening set 6-3 pretty quickly and rolled through the last sets with a break a-piece. If you’re blasting 52 winners, winning 67% of your second serve and brushing off your opponent with barely a batted eyelid you’re doing it right. He never faced a break point. It is another graceful, effortless performance from the Goat. He plays British qualifier Dan Evans next. If that lasts longer than the hour and 57 minutes Roger was on court today then it will be a big surprise.

MCA: DE MINAUR D. SOUSA
It isn’t the fault of Nick Kyrgios and Bernard Tomic that they are who they are. If we can cut Jelena Dokic some slack then we can cut them some slack. That being said, perhaps the best thing about Demon is that he’s just a really normal, nice guy. He still has a lot of competitive fire but it isn’t obnoxious. He knocked out Pedro Sousa with a no fuss 6-4, 7-5, 6-4 result in the first round. Lasting just a shade under two hours the youngster needs to improve on the 17-23 winner/unforced error mark. He broke four times, losing serve just once, and won more than a third of return points. His groundstrokes are getting smooth, his movement remains excellent and he has figured out how to ride the crowd. Henri Laaksonen, a qualifier, is up next. Then he must play Nadal. But he has a real shot against the Spaniard. Can he capitalize?

MELBOURNE ARENA: ANDERSON D. MANNARINO
Adrian Mannarino is a horrible first round draw for any seed. He has a lot of game. He also has experience on the biggest stage. Kevin Anderson was able to get through, however, 6-3, 5-7, 6-2, 6-1. That second set took everything out of the Frenchman. The South African’s heavy shots, big serve and superior ground game slowly took over. The Frenchman’s backhand started to wobble. When Kevin Anderson is winning 45% of return points and breaking you seven times you know you’re in trouble. Going 47-38 is all Anderson needs to do from now on when it comes to the winner/error ratio. Frances Tiafoe is next and that will be very entertaining. It’s a horror matchup for the South African.

COURT 8: OPELKA D. ISNER
The first big upset is here. We have been waiting ages for Reilly Opelka to arrive. Now he has. He edged John Isner 7-6[4], 7-6[6], 6-7[4], 7-6[5]. There were only five break points in the match, with both men taking one of their chances. Isner hit 47 aces to his compatriot’s 40. There isn’t much to say about this match. It was a serving duel. Rallies were not the order of the day. There were 289 points in the match. Just 53 were won against the serve. It took a lot of guts for the kid to come out on top, but he has plenty. Thomas Fabbiano is up next against the seven foot American. Just 21, he is the *new* Isner. And he has just been handed the baton.


Thanks and visit WTA BACKSPIN.

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