American Coco Gauff, the reigning US Open champion, secured a comfortable 6-3, 6-0 win over Slovakia’s Anna Karolina Schmiedlova on Monday to secure a spot in the second round of the Australian Open.
Gauff, 19, traded breaks with Schmiedlova after her opening service game and came up with a late hold to wrap up the first set.
The No. 4 seed stepped up a gear in the second set, as Schmiedlova continued to struggle on serve, and raced ahead 3-0 with a superb cross-court winner from deep to draw loud cheers from the fans on Rod Laver Arena.
Gauff was barely troubled from there as she served out the match, finishing it off with a neat backhand winner to set up a meeting with fellow American Caroline Dolehide in the next round.
Meanwhile, Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova of the Czech Republic was ousted in the first round, beaten 6-1, 6-2 by Ukraine’s Dayana Yastremska.
Vondrousova, the No. 7 seed, missed the Adelaide tune-up event with a hip injury and struggled on serve throughout, hitting seven double faults as she was well-beaten by the world No. 93-ranked player.
Yastremska, who had lost in the first round in her past seven Grand Slam appearances, had 26 winners. During her on-court interview after the match, Yastremska acknowledged the ongoing war in Ukraine and how proud she is of the Ukrainian people. She was emotional in recounting how a rocket had struck her grandmother’s house while she was playing in Brisbane earlier this month.
“I think we just need to remember about it and give as much support as support to Ukraine,” Yastremska said. “But I’m proud to be Ukrainian and thank you everybody for your support.”
In other early play, 19th-seeded Elina Svitolina advanced to the second round, beating Taylah Preston, a wild-card entry from Australia, 6-2, 6-2.
Four-time major winner Naomi Osaka makes her much-anticipated comeback to Grand Slam tennis after the birth of her daughter later Monday. The Japanese player takes on Caroline Garcia of France in the first round in the last match on center court.
