CREDIT: REUTERS/CARLOS BARRIA
Roger Federer strolled into the second round of the Australian Open with a clinical 6-4 6-2 7-5 rout of Taiwan’s Lu Yen-Hsun under the lights of Rod Laver Arena on Monday (January 19).
In ominous form after winning the Brisbane International in the leadup, the 33-year-old Swiss was impenetrable on serve and charged around the court like a teenager to preserve his unbeaten record in the first round at Melbourne Park in his 16th appearance.
The 47th-ranked Lu battled hard to make the third set a contest, but lost serve in the 11th game before Federer sealed the match in less than two hours.
The Swiss master will play Italian Simone Bolelli in the next round.
Maria Sharapova of Russia ruined Petra Martic’s 24th birthday by recording a 6-4 6-1 victory to advance to the second round.
Sharapova ran hot and cold in the first set, taking a 5-2 lead only for the Croatian to battle back to 5-4 and holding a break point to get the match back on serve before Sharapova held and then broke to seal the set in 43 minutes.
The Russian five-times grand slam champion faced some staunch resistance from the 184th-ranked Croatian in the second set despite the one-sided scoreline, but was mostly able to convert the crucial points when they mattered.
Sharapova will now meet compatriot Alexandra Panova in the second round after she beat Romania’s Sorana Cirstea 7-5 6-0.
Meanwhile, retired 2014 Australian Open champion Li Na of China told the centre court crowd that she was expecting her first child with her husband and former coach Jiang Shan.
“Me and Dennis (Jiang), we are so excited. Our first child will be out this summer,” the Chinese two-time grand slam champion told Rod Laver Arena in a ceremony before the night session on day one of the Australian Open, sparking cheers from the terraces where her beaming husband clapped.
“I think Dennis is doing a good job. He just made one ace.”
After capturing her first title at Melbourne Park last year on her third run to the final, 32-year-old Li retired in September, citing persistent injuries to her knees.
Reuters