The Australian Open: Day 4 Recap by Nadya Vlassoff
Day 4 in Melbourne provided the biggest upset of the Australian Open so far, as American Venus Williams lost a stunner to little known Spaniard, Carla Suarez Navarro. The other Williams sister, Serena, continued to dominate her opponents as she fought through some resistance from the 45th ranked Gisela Dulko and made it into the 3rd round. Elena Demenetieva also made it through, as well as Frenchmen Gilles Simon and Gael Monfils who looked much more improved on the court. Rafael Nadal continued to cruise as he decimated Roko Karanusic in straight sets and Nadal is yet to drop a set. It was a bad day for the Croatian men as three of them were ousted in the 2nd round including Ivo Karlovic who let his match slip through his fingers. Andy Murray, the new star on the men's tour, also won his match as the majority of the favourites continued to make it through week 1.
Best:
Jo-Wilfred Tsonga (5) vs. Ivan Ljubicic
This was the match of the night as the fifth seed took on the former number three player in the world in sizzling fashion. In the first set both players raced to 6 all and then went to a tiebreak where Ljubicic got the early lead and went on to win it 7-4 and take the first set. Then it was all Ljubicic in the second set as he set the pace. Although Tsonga went game for game with him, Ljubicic had easy service games until the 9th game where Tsonga was up 40-0 on Ljubicic's serve and failed to convert for a break point to serve for the set in the next game. Then at 6 all and in the tiebreak, Tsonga somehow found an opening and played two fantastic net points to go on to win the set and change the momentum in his favour. In the third set it went to a tiebreak again and Tsonga once again hit several brilliant volleys and with the help of his reworked forehand, he won the tiebreak and the third set. It was downhill from there for Ljubicic who seemed to run out of energy in the 4th game of the fourth set and was broken twice successively. From there, Tsonga went on to clinch the match 6-2 as he shook off some rust against a very dangerous second round opponent. Although Ljubicic played an excellent match, his weakened fitness level proved to be his downfall as Tsonga spread him across the court. That, coupled with the fact that Tsonga only allowed Ljubicic one break point chance, was also a deciding factor. However, it was not a complete lose for Ljubicic who looks to climb back up the rankings and if he continues to play the way he did last night there is little doubt that he won't get back into the top 20 and maybe even the top 10.
Venus Williams (6) vs. Carla Suarez Navarro
The most
thrilling match in the women's draw in the second
round saw former slam champion Venus Williams
go up against the Spaniard Carla Suarez Navarro.
It was Williams who reeled off success games
as she broke Suarez twice in the first set to
take it 6-2 as she looked to make quick work
of her smaller opponent. Surprisingly for Venus,
and the entire crowd at Rod Laver Arena, Suarrez
went up 4-1 early in the second set but got
into some trouble as Venus broke back to get
to 4-3. Then on Venus's service game Suarrez
hit a gorgeous shot down the lines to win deuce
and take the game. Navarro relied heavily on
her backhand which did not let her down throughout
the match as she made continual shots down the
line for winners and also made Venus scramble
on her own service games with vicious returns.
As big as Venus's serves may have been, Navarro
was there to defend with equally big returns.
Then, in the third set, Venus looked ready to take the set in her usual fashion, but then Navarro refused to be shut out and broke Venus to go back to 2-4 and then again at 4-5 on an incredible return while Venus was off pace and not expecting such a powerful shot. With Navarro serving, Venus went up 40-30 and was set to break serve and take the match, but overshot her backhand as it sailed over the baseline and left Venus shaking her head. With Venus set at match point, she was not able to control her crosscourt shot and conceded the game to Suarez who held serve to bring it to 5-5. Suarez used her clean shots to force Venus to make two backhand errors and then the ensuing point was shanked wide by Venus as Suarez broke her service game and went up 6-5 against the number 6 seed. Finally, it was Suarez, serving for the set and the match who prevailed as Venus' return hit the net to give the feisty Spaniard the match.
Worst:
Ivo Karlovic (25) vs. Mario Ancic
Two
of the biggest servers on the men's tour, Ivo
Karlovic and Mario Ancic went head-to-head in
this second round matchup, which favoured Karlovic's
improved game and heavy hitting. Unfortunately
for Karlovic, his statistics on paper did not
translate into his actual match. Although he
had 25 aces compared to Ancic's 8, he also had
far more unforced errors. Unable to convert
more than 50% of his net approaches, Karlovic
seemed flustered and confused out on the court
as he struggled to find any real rhythm in his
game. Just like David Nalbandian in Day 3, Karlovic
let the match get away from him and let his
emotions get the best of him instead of focusing
on the next point. They both had the same break
point conversion rate of 50% but Ancic had the
edge as he won 5 compared to Karlovic's 3. Going
into the fifth set, Karlovic was broken and
from there Ancic ran away with the match throwing
his opponent into a small fit, as Karlovic had
no answer for Ancic. This really was a disappointing
match to watch as Karlovic actually fared worse
at the Australian Open this year than he did
last year. For Ancic, this is a big win as he
focused on his return of service game, which
he knew would be a big part of Karlovic's offense.
While Ancic definitely got a big boost from
this victory as he took out a seeded player
he definitely has his work cut out for him in
the next round when he will face the 6th seed
from France, Gilles Simon.
Another day and another shocking upset down in Melbourne Park as the crowd was treated to some excellent play and the chance to see some new faces that have surprised and delighted so far. It is difficult to say whether or not these players like Carla Suarez Navarro and Yen-Hsun Lu will be able to continue their success so far but even if they do not, they certainly made the road to week 2 a little less crowded for everyone else still in the draw.
The most
thrilling match in the women's draw in the second
round saw former slam champion Venus Williams
go up against the Spaniard Carla Suarez Navarro.
It was Williams who reeled off success games
as she broke Suarez twice in the first set to
take it 6-2 as she looked to make quick work
of her smaller opponent. Surprisingly for Venus,
and the entire crowd at Rod Laver Arena, Suarrez
went up 4-1 early in the second set but got
into some trouble as Venus broke back to get
to 4-3. Then on Venus's service game Suarrez
hit a gorgeous shot down the lines to win deuce
and take the game. Navarro relied heavily on
her backhand which did not let her down throughout
the match as she made continual shots down the
line for winners and also made Venus scramble
on her own service games with vicious returns.
As big as Venus's serves may have been, Navarro
was there to defend with equally big returns.
Two
of the biggest servers on the men's tour, Ivo
Karlovic and Mario Ancic went head-to-head in
this second round matchup, which favoured Karlovic's
improved game and heavy hitting. Unfortunately
for Karlovic, his statistics on paper did not
translate into his actual match. Although he
had 25 aces compared to Ancic's 8, he also had
far more unforced errors. Unable to convert
more than 50% of his net approaches, Karlovic
seemed flustered and confused out on the court
as he struggled to find any real rhythm in his
game. Just like David Nalbandian in Day 3, Karlovic
let the match get away from him and let his
emotions get the best of him instead of focusing
on the next point. They both had the same break
point conversion rate of 50% but Ancic had the
edge as he won 5 compared to Karlovic's 3. Going
into the fifth set, Karlovic was broken and
from there Ancic ran away with the match throwing
his opponent into a small fit, as Karlovic had
no answer for Ancic. This really was a disappointing
match to watch as Karlovic actually fared worse
at the Australian Open this year than he did
last year. For Ancic, this is a big win as he
focused on his return of service game, which
he knew would be a big part of Karlovic's offense.
While Ancic definitely got a big boost from
this victory as he took out a seeded player
he definitely has his work cut out for him in
the next round when he will face the 6th seed
from France, Gilles Simon.