Casey Dellacqua’s hopes of another dream run at this year’s Australian Open have been ruined after being knocked out of her first round match by Daniela Hantuchova of Slovakia 7-6(11) 6-4 at Rod Laver Arena on Monday night.
The 23-year-old Australian had an impressive start, breaking Hantuchova in the opening game of the first set with a forehand winner.
Hantuchova, the 19th seed, then broke back to level the match 2-2. Both players then broke each other’s serve numerous times, which led to a tie-break.
Hantuchova was the one who prevailed, clinching the tiebreak 13-11 in 67 minutes.
Making her sixth Australian Open appearance, Dellacqua lost her serve in the opening game of the second set, and Hantuchova soon took control.
Serving at 3-5 down to stay in the match, Dellacqua saved one match point, and then bounced back in the next game racing to a 0-40 lead, giving her three break points.
Hantuchova, an Australian Open 2008 semifinalist, won the next four points taking her to match point, which Dellacqua saved. A third was beyond her, however, as the Slovakian closed out the match in a tick under two hours.
Hantuchova will now face Mathilde Johansson of France, who defeated American Jill Craybas 6-2 1-6 7-5.
Quick facts
Dellacqua had 48 unforced errors to Hantuchova’s 41
Hantuchova had seven aces to Dellacqua’s two
Hantuchova was a force at the net, winning eight of 10 points when she came in
Dellacqua had more winners than Hantuchova (27-24)
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