Last night I burned my dinner because I was so engrossed in the Australian Open that I didn’t hear the kitchen timer. If you were too busy eating non-burnt food to watch night three of the tournament, here’s what you missed.
What in the world?
Last night the Australian Open almost lost two of its top seeds — Maria Sharapova and Rafael Nadal barely inched out their second-round opponents. Sharapova survived tournament qualifier Alexandra Panova, saving two match points to win 6-1, 4-6, 7-5. Nadal prevailed in a four-hour battle against world no. 112 Tim Smyczek 6-2, 3-6, 6-7 (2), 6-3, 7-5.
Watch Sharapova hit the line with a crosscourt forehand winner to save match point at 5-4:
Watch Nadal fall to the ground after his match like he just won the whole tournament:
Any other surprises?
Roger Federer lost the first set against Italy’s Simone Bolelli 6-3. Then he gave him the beat down, winning 6-3, 6-2, 6-2. The no. 2 seed had to take a medical timeout for a possible bee sting on his little finger. In the women’s draw, Karolina Pliskova, the no. 22 seed, narrowly escaped tournament qualifier Oceane Dodin with a 7-5, 5-7, 6-4 victory.
Watch Dodin hit a really forceful serve and lose her racket:
The men’s bracket was shaken up a little when world no. 78 Marcos Baghdatis defeated seeded David Goffin in four sets, 6-1, 6-4, 4-6, 6-0. Baghatis, age 29, was a finalist at the 2006 Australian Open, so it probably felt pretty good to upset a player five years his junior and 56 ranking points higher.
Pretty predictable stuff
Shuai Peng, 2014 U.S. Open semi-finalist, destroyed Magdalena Rybarikova 6-1, 6-1, making less than 10 unforced errors and acing her opponent six times. Elena Makarova, also a 2014 U.S. Open finalist, made it through to the third round, defeating Roberta Vinci 6-2, 6-4. Simona Halep (3) and Eugenie Bouchard (7) both won easily, dropping just four and three games, respectively.
Watch the highlights from the Makarova/Vinci match (You’ll especially appreciate the way the announcer pronounces “Game Makarova.”):
On the men’s side, Bernard Tomic and Philipp Kohlschreiber had a forseeable close match, but Tomic, who defeated Kohlschreiber at a tournament earlier this month, came away victorious 6-7(5), 6-4, 7-6(6), 7-6(5). Whew! Couldn’t have been much closer. Ivo Karlovic and Nick Kyrgios also had an expected tight match, with the latter player ultimately clinching the victory 7-6(4), 6-4, 5-7, 6-4. Meanwhile, Tomas Berdych surprised viewers a bit after his first set against no. 108 Jurgen Melzer went into a tiebreaker. But the no. 7 seed assuaged fans’ worries when he bageled Melzer in the tiebreak and won the following sets 6-2, 6-2.
Btw, if you haven’t heard, Berdych announced his engagement to girlfriend of two years, Ester Satarova, before the match. Here’s some pictures of them being cutesy in Melbourne.
