Kings Arthur
After a season of learning in the Grand Slam, Arthur Fils (34th) does not want to waste any more time. Despite a bad start against Jiri Vesely, he won his first match at the Australian Open, in four sets (4-6, 7-5, 6-2, 6-3), on Tuesday. Even if he is now 293rd in the world and his physique corresponds less and less to the profile of a top athlete, Vesely still has an incredibly powerful arm. And in the morning furnace, that was enough to take Son by surprise. But the Frenchman knew how to be patient, waiting for the inevitable physical decline of his opponent. Returning to a set everywhere, he had done the hardest part and the end of the match was much easier.
After the Australian premiere of Arthur Fils, here is the Grand Slam premiere of Arthur Cazaux. Beneficiary of a wild card to enter directly into the big draw, the 122nd in the world completely justified it by taking out the 33rd in the world, Laslo Djere, at the end of a 3h28 fight (6-2, 6-7 [3], 6-2, 3-6, 6-2). In the next round, he will face the winner of the match between Holger Rune, seeded No. 8, and Yoshihito Nishioka.
Here comes Dodin again
A little under the radar, Océane Dodin (95th) was fondly remembered by fans during her first round. She took the opportunity to beat a top seed in a Grand Slam for the first time since Jelena Jankovic at the US Open in 2015. It was even the first time she faced a member of the top 100 since Roland-Garros. But against Lin Zhu, seeded n°29, she showed off her power and her service (86% of points behind her first ball) to clearly win (6-4, 6-3) despite severe pain. on the left thigh. She will face Martina Trevisan in the next round.
To complete the very positive picture of this French night, Clara Burel (51st) achieved her clear and logical victory over Aleksandra Krunic (687th) in just over an hour (6-4, 6-1).