Victoria Azarenka won her first WTA match since giving birth to her son six months ago. She made her return to the tennis court in Mallorca this week after receiving a wildcard, and her comeback was absolutely remarkable.
Azarenka saved three match points
Victoria Azarenka defeated Risa Ozaki from Japan 6-3 4-6 7-6 (7) after two hours and 47 minutes of play. The match was suspended on Tuesday night and it continued today. Azarenka opened the match strongly, as she led 4-0 after first four games. Ozaki responded in the second set, as she didn't allow any break points on her serve.
It was a huge battle in the deciding set, as Ozaki had a 4-1 lead, but Azarenka managed to fight back and tied the score at five apiece.
Then, Ozaki won eight straight points and had three consecutive match points on her serve. Victoria saved them all and secured a tie-break. Risa Ozaki opened the tie-break in better fashion, as she had a two point lead several times, but it wasn't enough to beat the highly motivated Azarenka. Azarenka took advantage on her third match point and took the victory with two consecutive winners.
The former Australian Open champion will play against the young and talented Croatian player Ana Konjuh in the second round. Konjuh defeated Ons Jabeur in three sets.
Andy Murray continues to struggle
The grass court season has started and Andy Murray is definitely one of the players who was looking forward to it. The world No.1 has been struggling all season, and he desperately needs a title. However, his first match in London this season was not a match to remember.
He was defeated by world No.
90 Jordan Thompson in straight sets after 1 hour and 44 minutes of play. The 23-year-old Australian didn't have much respect for Murray, as he completely overplayed him with a classical serve-and-volley style. This was the biggest win in Thompson's career. Jordan Thompson will play against Sam Querrey in the second round.
Andy Murray is not the only seeded player who lost in the first round.
On the contrary, two other top seeds are also out of the ATP Queens. The second seed Stanislas Wawrinka lost to Feliciano Lopez 7-5 7-6, while the third seed Milos Raonic lost to Thanasi Kokkinakis in two tie-breaks. The No. 9 seed Nick Kyrgios was forced to withdraw from the competition early due to injury.
So, Marin Cilic is now the only Top 10 player left in the draw, as he is looking for his second ATP title of the season.
