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After cracking through for their first wins at the Australian Open, Aussies Jarmila Gajdosova and Marinko Matosevic will have to take their games to another level when they face tougher, higher-ranked opponents on Wednesday.
Matosevic came from two-sets-to-one down to win for only the third time at Grand Slam level, defeating Russian qualifier Alexander Kurdyavtsev in five sets.
Meanwhile Gajdosova broke her Australian Open duck, after nine previous unsuccessful attempts, by defeating Romania’s Alexandra Dulgheru in straight sets.
The Slovak-turned-Aussie will now face an even tougher opponent on Wednesday when she opposes another Romanian, world number three Simona Halep, in the second round.
Halep was one of the few seeds who survived through the opening day of the tournament after eight seeds – including two top-ten seeds, a Wimbledon semi-finalist and a US Open quarter-finalist – were all sent packing on a Manic Monday.
Another two seeds, former world number one Jelena Jankovic and 2011 quarter-finalist Andrea Petkovic, fell on Tuesday; they joined the likes of Ana Ivanovic and Angelique Kerber as other big-name first-round casualties.
Halep has gone from strength to strength since rocketing from outside the top 50 in May 2013 to finish 11th at that year’s end, and carried that form into 2014 when she reached the French Open final and a career-high ranking of world number two. She has wasted little time settling into the new year, picking up a title in Shenzhen before being forced to withdraw from the Sydney International due to illness.
It did not appear to affect her at the Open, as she defeated Italy’s Karin Knapp in straight sets in the first round.
Many are saying that this will be the year where the Romanian breaks through for her first Grand Slam title. She did come very close in the aforementioned French Open final, falling to Maria Sharapova in three tight sets. Gajdosova will have her work cut out if she is continue her run through the draw.
Their match, which also doubles as their first career meeting, is scheduled for Wednesday night, second on Rod Laver Arena after Rafael Nadal’s match against Tim Smyczek.
Bosnian-born Matosevic, on the other hand, will oppose former Wimbledon champion Andy Murray, who strolled to a straight-sets victory over Indian qualifier Yuki Bhambri in his opener. It will be the second time Matosevic and Murray have met at Grand Slam level, after meeting in the second round of last year’s French Open. On that occasion, the Scot won in straight sets en route to the semi-finals.
Murray’s run to the last four at Roland Garros was his best result at the Grand Slams in 2014, achieved at the tournament in which he has fared the worst, never reaching the final and being easily beaten by Rafael Nadal in his two semi-finals.
The Scot endured a below-par season last year as he tried to regain his form following back surgery which cut short his 2013 season following the unsuccessful defence of his 2012 US Open title.
He dropped out of the top 10 for the first time in six years but a late season run which saw him win three titles saw him finish the year ranked sixth.
This year he opted to start his season at the Hopman Cup and he impressed in the singles, winning all three of his singles rubbers in straight sets – including a win against Matosevic.
Additionally, Murray thumped world number three Rafael Nadal in the semi-finals in Abu Dhabi, losing just two games, and won the title there without hitting a ball after Novak Djokovic was forced to withdraw through illness.
Matosevic is yet to defeat Murray, let alone win a set against him, in their three meetings (including their recent Hopman Cup showdown, which isn’t an ATP World Tour-sanctioned match) to date.
Their match is scheduled for second on Hisense Arena after the second-round tie between the Czech Republic’s Klara Koukalova and Germany’s Julia Goerges.
It shapes as two tough tests for Australians who have finally broken through for their first wins at Melbourne Park.
Can they continue their runs and knock off their higher-seeded, more-fancied opponents, or will the gap between them and their opponents prove too much?
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