Australian Open: Sharapova serves a double bagel to reach the second round

The 101st Australian Open got off to a breezy start, with Maria Sharapova making first use of the sparsely occupied Rod Laver Arena and crushing her 107th ranked compatriot Olga Puchkova, 6-0, 6-0 to reach the second round. If Puchkova missed her breakfast this morning, Sharapova had help at hand as she served her opponent a couple of bagels in a crushing 55 minute defeat.

Veteran Venus Williams also underlined her keen desire with an equally comfortable 6-1 6-0 victory over Galina Voskoboeva to advance through to the next round. The ladies maintained their frantic pace, when Na Li scored a 78 minute 6-1, 6-3 victory over the little known Kazakh Sesil Karatantcheva to get her promising campaign off the ground.

Sharapova made an edgy start, but after rallying to save a couple of break points for the first game it was all one way traffic from there onwards. In fact those were the only two opportunities she allowed her hapless opponent as she turned on a commanding performance to remind the draw of her ever present threat.

The Russian diva, rumoured to be dating the promising Grigor Dimitrov, scored 18 winners and was helped in no mean measure by the 19 unforced errors from her opponent. Maria converted 6 of the 9 break opportunities as she reminded her opponent that the only thing common between the two players was that they both reside in Florida in the United States. The 2008 champion, who completed her set of Grand Slam titles when she won the French Open last year is seeking her celebrated career’s fifth title.

Venus Williams is the much loved elder stateswoman of the WTA world, and the crowd have warmed up to her even more ever since she has returned on court after a well documented battle for health and fitness. She was diagnosed with an erratic medical condition known as the Sjögren’s syndrome in 2011. The systemic autoimmune disease affects the glands that produce tears and saliva and the resulting dryness has made Venus a prisoner without warning.

In the first round though, Venus looked brilliant as a shining star in her pastel dress as she thumped 21 scorching winners past her opponent on course to a flamboyant victory in the presence of her mother Oracene Prince. Voskoboeva could only sneak a single game off Venus and the powerful service of the American came to immediate aid when faced with break points. Venus hammered a forehand return winner to the deuce court of her opponent to seal the first set.

The Russian had two points in each set to break serve, but that was about the only sniff she got at trying to get back at the dominant Williams. Venus raced away to the finish, closing the second set without the loss of a game in merely 29 minutes. Venus won 8 of 12 forays to the net and her opponent was constantly shooting herself in the foot with the 20 unforced errors that eased the path of the elder Williams into the second round in an exact hour of play on the Hisense Arena.

Dimitrov Disappoints

Meanwhile, among the men – Grigor Dimitrov flattered to deceive again when he faltered in his first round match against Frenchman Julien Benneteau to lose in straight sets. The Bulgarian got off to a confident 3-0 start with the help of a break in the second game. But Benneateau set about repairing the damage by breaking serve in the fifth and seventh games to take control of the first set. The Frenchman took his first set point in the tenth game and things went downhill from there for the Bulgarian.

Danger intensified immediately, but Dimitrov fought hard to survive a 13 point first game that included four deuces including a saved break point to begin the second set. A dispirited effort after that helped Benneteau break serve twice – first in the third and subsequently in the seventh game – and clinch a two set advantage. Awoken by the looming exit, Dimitrov made a valiant effort in the third set. But despite a much improved effort, Benneteau had his palms around Dimitrov’s throat and he eventually strangled him to submission when he forced deuce and snatched the break in the seventh game to shut the door.

It was a stinging 4-6, 2-6, 4-6 loss that should send Dimitrov and his team back to the drawing board after what seemed like a promising start to the season in Brisbane, where he lost in the finals to Andy Murray. Another promising young man, Kei Nishikori survived an early exit – coming from behind to register a 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-1, 6-3 victory over Victor Hanescu to advance through to the second round. The Japanese start will take on Carlos Berloq for a place in the third round – the Argentine took four sets to get past Belgian Maxime Authom.

The tenth seeded Nicolas Almagro survived a scare, needing well over three hours to prevail in five sets over Steve Johnson 7-5, 6-7(4), 6-2, 6-7(6), 6-2 to advance to the second round against fellow Spaniard Daniel Gimeno-Traver. Polish doubles specialist Lukasz Kubot fell in five sets to Gimeno-Traver 7-6(4), 4-6, 0-6, 6-4, 4-6. The 15th seeded Swiss, Stanislas Wawrinka defeated German Cedrik-Marcel Stebe 6-2, 6-4, 6-3 to reach the next round. In another early match, Belgian Xavier Malisse was a straight set winner over the Spaniard Pablo Andujar – 6-3, 6-1, 6-2.