The first Grand Slam of the year had an unpredictable start. The matches of the first round brought some premature exits from the tournament in Melbourne.
The main favorites in single contests, male and female managed to pass to the next round. Novak Djokovic 1 ATP and Serena Williams 1 WTA offered a consistent game, full of confidence and precision justifying their positions in the rankings.
However, there were some other players who performed below expectations.
Shocking results in the men's singles
In men's singles competition were some fierce matches. Kevin Anderson 12 ATP has been upset by a player ranked 93 in the world, Rajeev Ram. Seeded 12 on the main draw, Anderson leaves the competition in the first round. However, the biggest surprise came from Rafael Nadal. Nadal 5 ATP was surpassed at the end of a dramatic match by his compatriot Fernando Verdasco. The match was a real thriller: 5 sets that lasted for nearly five hours. Nadal leaves the competition in the first round, having been a former champion in Melbourne.
He won his only title here back in 2009 and lost his previous two attempts.
Top seeded eliminated one after another from women`s main draw
It seems an unwritten rule of Tennis is applied again. Matches in the women's competition produced unexpected eliminations in the first round. One by one, Caroline Wozniacki 17 WTA, Venus Williams 10 WTA, Simona Halep 2 WTA were surprisingly defeated by some players with a low ranking.
Undoubtedly, Simona Halep's elimination is the biggest surprise so far, as the Romanian tennis player was considered one of the main favorites. The draws gave her a huge advantage: she wouldn`t have played against Maria Sharapova 5 WTA, Serena Williams 1 WTA, Garbine Muguruza 3 WTA until the finals. So, that was a great opportunity missed by Halep in pursuit of her first Grand Slam title. Last year Halep also had big problems in major tournaments, as she was eliminated at Roland Garros and Wimbledon in the first rounds. It'll be interesting to see how the field narrows from here.