Until he took on defending champion Novak Djokovic at Rod Laver Arena yesterday in the Australian Open, Dino Prizmic had never played a Grand Slam match.
The 18-year-old Croatian qualifier, who was born seven months after Djokovic made his Grand Slam debut in 2005, made it last as long as he could, unsettling the 24-time major winner at times before Djokovic finished off the match 6-2, 6-7 (5/7), 6-3, 6-4.
Djokovic made his Grand Slam debut at Melbourne Park in 2005 and has developed a record at the Australian Open that no man can match, with 10 titles here among his unprecedented career haul.
Photo: AFP
The first set played out just about as expected. From there, it became quite a ride.
Prizmic took the second set off Djokovic and went up a break in the third, stunning a capacity crowd, before the world’s No. 1-ranked player broke back and took the set.
Prizmic did not give up when he trailed 4-0 in the fourth, either, saving a breakpoint before getting a service break back. He saved three match points at 5-3 down and made Djokovic serve it out. He then saved a further two match points before it ended in 4 hours, 1 minute.
“He deserved every applause, every credit he got tonight,” Djokovic said. “Amazing performance for someone that is 18 years old and never had the experience of playing on a big stage. Kudos to him.”
The first of three Sundays — an extra day was introduced at Melbourne Park to try to reduce the number of post-midnight finishes — did not have quite the desired outcome.
Fifth-seeded Andrey Rublev needed four hours to beat Thiago Seyboth Wild 7-5, 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 7-6 (10/6).
No. 12 Taylor Fritz needed a medical timeout to get his left ankle taped in the second set before he recovered to beat Facundo Diaz Acosta 4-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-2, 6-4 in a seesawing four-hour match.
Djokovic’s match finished after 11pm, making for a late start for defending women’s champion Aryna Sabalenka.
The first match on Rod Laver was over quickly, with Italy’s Davis Cup star Jannik Sinner advancing after a 6-4, 7-5, 6-3 first-round win over No. 59-ranked Botic van de Zandschulp in two-and-a-half hours. It was his first match since a memorable November when he twice beat Djokovic and won the Davis Cup.
“Means a lot to me to start off with a win,” fourth-seeded Sinner said in a post-match TV interview as a half-dozen fans dressed in carrot costumes cheered from the stands. “Physically, I feel good. I’m here in good shape. I think I can be happy for today.”
Women’s eighth seed Maria Sakkari admitted her relief after she beat Nao Hibino of Japan 6-4, 6-1, her first Grand Slam win since last year’s Australian Open.
“I lost three first rounds in my last three Grand Slams,” she said. “For me, it was a very difficult match today emotionally. I’m happy I managed to do the job right and play a good second set.”
Two 16-year-old players advanced to the second round: Brenda Fruhvirtova recorded her first Grand Slam win, overcoming Anna Bogdan 2-6, 6-4, 6-3 and Alina Korneeva — the Australian Open junior champion last year — who rallied to beat Sara Sorribes Tormo 4-6, 6-3, 6-2.
In women’s doubles, Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei and Elise Mertens of Belgium, and Taiwan’s Chan Hao-ching and Giuliana Olmos of Mexico are to start their openers tomorrow.
Additional reporting by staff writer
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