Australia’s top-ranked men’s tennis player, Alex de Minaur, has successfully launched his US Open journey with a decisive straight-sets victory against Italian qualifier Andrea Guerrieri. In a match delayed and later interrupted by a two-hour rain pause, De Minaur emerged victorious with scores of 6-2, 6-2, 6-4. His next challenge in the tournament will be against Dutch player Botic van de Zandschulp in the second round.
Despite the interrupted schedule due to persistent rain in New York, De Minaur maintained his focus, breaking Guerrieri’s serve twice in each set while surrendering his serve only once. The match concluded in under two hours of actual play time. The weather conditions could force De Minaur to play three consecutive matches in as many days, should he continue his pursuit of a deep run in the competition.
In the women’s singles, Australian Maya Joint made a notable effort before losing to ninth-seed Elina Svitolina in three sets, 6-2, 6-7 (6), 6-4. Joint achieved a milestone by becoming the first Australian woman to take a set from a top-10 player in the tournament this year.
Elsewhere, Daria Kasatkina was ousted by Spain’s Paula Badosa, and Taylah Preston faced a swift defeat from American Taylor Townsend with scores of 6-1, 6-1. Kim Birrell also saw her US Open campaign come to an end after losing to Russia’s Ekaterina Alexandrova, 6-1, 2-6, 6-3.