Daniil Medvedev made a statement on Monday night, overcoming Marcos Giron and one member of the crowd who the Russian told to “f*** off” at one point.
Elsewhere, Alex de Minaur will headline a nine-strong contingent of Australians vying for success at their home slam on day two of the Australian Open.
Plus some of the women’s tournament favourites begin their campaigns and a blockbuster clash between Andy Murray and reigning semi-finalist Matteo Berrettini loom.
Follow Day 2 of the Australian Open in our live blog below, with a full order of play and updates at the bottom of the article!
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‘F*** OFF’: MEDVEDEV IN ‘STRANGE’ CLASH WITH FAN
Two-time losing finalist Daniil Medvedev fired up his bid to go one better at the Australian Open with a straight-sets demolition of Marcos Giron on Monday.
The match ended in odd circumstances though as Medvedev appeared to tell one fan to “f*** off” as he served for the win at 5-2 up, given a warning by the umpire for an audible obscenity.
Former British No.1 Tim Henman said it was a “very strange time” for Medvedev to be reacting in that fashion.
“It was a very good performance but a really strange ending with the last two points with his reaction and swearing at someone in the audience,” he said.
“Maybe a bit of afterthought from last year.”
Medvedev clashed with parts of the Australian Open crowd last year, taking aim at some fans at Melbourne Park for having a “low IQ” while accusing others of being “disrespectful”.
Although upon reflection earlier this month the Russian said the “low IQ” sledge was “probably not smart” on his part.
The audible obscenity was the only blemish on what was an otherwise dominant display from Medvedev, who blasted past the 56th-ranked American 6-0, 6-1, 6-2 on Rod Laver Arena in just 1hr 36mins.
His reward is a second-round clash with Australian wildcard John Millman, who came through a five-setter against Switzerland’s Marc-Andrea Huesler.
“Really happy with the match, Marcos is a tough opponent and to beat him with this score in the first round of a Slam is great,” he said.
“I’m really happy about my level.”
World number 1 using Barty as motivation | 01:09
CAN DEMON AND HIS MATES CARRY AUSSIE FLAG FURTHER?
Following Nick Kyrgios’ shock withdrawal from the tournament, Alex de Minaur is now the highest-ranked Australian competing in the event, while Ajla Tomljanovic’s withdrawal made Jaimee Fourlis the event’s top-ranked local female at world No.160.
But the lack of high-ranking players didn’t stop the Aussies from providing four first-round winners on Monday.
De Minaur will be a heavy favourite against qualifier Yu Hsiou Hsu in the John Cain Arena night session, while Fourlis will face world No.80 Linda Fruhvirtova.
While Kokkinakis won’t be able to defend his doubles title with Kyrgios, he will draw a huge crowd as he faces former world No.9 Fabio Fognini in a tough opening match.
Other marquee first round matchups on day two include fifth seed Andrey Rublev against 2020 US Open champion Dominic Thiem, while on Rod Laver Arena, five-time Australian Open finalist Andy Murray will take on last year’s semi-finalist Matteo Berrettini.
Among the other Australians in action is Kim Birrell, who will take on 31st seed Kaia Kanepi and look to rediscover success at grand slam level.
‘The ball boy take my racquet!’ | 00:45
AUSTRALIAN OPEN 2023
Day 2 Order Of Play (All courts from 11am)
Rod Laver Arena
[5] Aryna Sabalenka (BLR) v Tereza Martincova (CZE)
Katherine Sebov (CAN) v [4] Caroline Garcia (FRA)
[13] Matteo Berrettini (ITA) v Andy Murray (GBR)
Night session from 7pm
Tamara Zidansek (SLO) v [2] Ons Jabeur (TUN)
Roberto Carballes Baena (ESP) v [4] Novak Djokovic (SRB)
Show Court 1
Garbine Muguruza (ESP) v [26] Elise Mertens (BEL)
Xiyu Wang (CHN) v [30] Karolina Pliskova (CZE)
Not before 2:30pm
Juan Pablo Varillas (PER) v [12] Alexander Zverev (GER)
Night session from 7pm
Viktoriya Tomova (BUL) v [12] Belinda Bencic (SUI)
Tomas Machac (CZE) v [2] Casper Ruud (NOR)
John Cain Arena
[5] Andrey Rublev (RUS) v Dominic Thiem (AUT)
Not before 1pm
[8] Taylor Fritz (USA) v Nikoloz Basilashvili (GEO)
Maryna Zanevska (BEL) v [9] Veronika Kudermetova (RUS)
Night session not before 7pm
Yu Hsiou Hsu (TPE) v [22] Alex de Minaur (AUS)
Aussies in action
Kia Arena, Match 1
[31] Kaia Kanepi (EST) v Kimberly Birrell (AUS)
Kia Arena, Match 3
Thanasi Kokkinakis (AUS) v Fabio Fognini (ITA)
1573 Arena, Match 4 (not before 4pm)
Aleksandar Vukic (AUS) v Brandon Holt (USA)
Court 3, Match 2
JJ Wolf (USA) v Jordan Thompson (AUS)
Court 3, Match 3
Chun-Hsin Tseng (TPE) v Alexei Popyrin (AUS)
Court 6, Match 3
Christopher O’Connell (AUS) v Jenson Brooksby (USA)
Court 7, Match 2
Max Purcell (AUS) v Emil Ruusuvuori (FIN)
Court 13, Match 2
Linda Fruhvirtova (CZE) v Jaimee Fourlis (AUS)
Follow updates from the Australian Open in our live blog below!
