The first round at the Brisbane International concludes when Australian John Millman looks to build on a strong finish to 2017 as he takes on Canadian Peter Polansky. Join The Roar for live scores and coverage from around 9:30pm (AEDT).
Millman, on the back of a great performance for Australia at the Davis Cup semi-final against Belgium, had a positive finish to 2017.
His aim for the start of 2018 will be to stay ahead of Thanasi Kokkinakis and Matthew Ebden in the line and retain his place in the team for the upcoming first round tie against Germany.
The only way he is going to do that is by putting together a string of good results, and a wildcard to the Brisbane International is the perfect way for him to start his season.
Avoiding the big players in the field and taking on Polansky in the first round should leave him with a good shot at moving forward.
Millman is better than his ranking of 128 suggests, and winning his final tournament of 2017 in Hua Hin was a great step forward, defeating countryman Andrew Whittington in the final.
That followed a run to the third round at the US Open, including a win over Nick Kyrgios, but being outside the top 100 means he doesn’t have an automatic spot at the Australian Open and he has not yet been offered a wildcard.
The 28-year-old needs to build form in a hurry ahead of a possible qualification run to his home grand slam.
Polansky had to qualify for the Brisbane International and like Millman faces a similar route into the first grand slam of the year.
After an ordinary finish to the 2017 season, Polansky was strong in qualification for the first tournament of the new year. He went past Filip Peliwo 6-2, 6-2, before recording a 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 victory over Yannick Hanfmann.
The second win, wrestling back momentum and not dropping his serve in the third set was particularly impressive, but he will need to maintain that level across three sets against Millman, who proved exactly what he could do against world No.8 David Goffin in the Davis Cup last year.
Playing the percentages and breaking the less powerful Millman down will be important for Polansky if he is to get through here.
Prediction
Millman has home court advantage and finished 2017 brilliantly. Given he hasn’t played a competitive match, don’t be surprised if he starts slowly, but then comes cruising over the top to win.
Millman in three sets.
Be sure to join The Roar for live coverage of the Brisbane International from around 9:30pm (AEDT) or at the conclusion of Johanna Konta and Ajla Tomljanović on the Pat Rafter Arena and don’t forget to drop a comment below.
Scott Pryde
Expert
Thanks for joining me this evening on The Roar for our live coverage of the 2017 Brisbane International as John Millman advanced to the second round. Hopefully you enjoyed the call. I'll be back back tomorrow from around 3:30pm (AEDT) for Nick Kyrgios and Matthew Ebden, then again at 8pm (AEDT) for Alex De Minaur and Milos Raonic. Bye for now.
Scott Pryde
Expert
Thoughts on the match Roarers?
Scott Pryde
Expert
GAME, SET, MATCH JOHN MILLMAN Well, that was an absolutely dominant second set from John Millman. Wide serve, short return and a bit forehand back in behind for Millman to get the job done. It was a strong first set as well, but he ran away with that. Millman will now face top seed Grigor Dimitrov in the second round. Peter Polansky 6 0 John Millman 7 6
Scott Pryde
Expert
2 match points now! Polansky 6 0 - 15 Millman 7 5 - 40
Scott Pryde
Expert
Polansky now returns a kick serve long. Polansky 6 0 - 15 Millman 7 5 - 30
Scott Pryde
Expert
Fault from Millman. The second is attacked with a backhand and Millman has to do a bit of defensive work before Polansky puts a forehand into the net. Polansky 6 0 - 15 Millman 7 5 - 15
Scott Pryde
Expert
Millman serving for the match. He starts with a fault, then it's a shorter return and Millman puts a backhand wide. Polansky 6 0 - 15 Millman 7 5 - 0
Scott Pryde
Expert
Triple break Double fault. Millman to serve for the match on the other side of the change of ends. This has been an utterly dominant second set. Polansky 6 0 - Millman 7 5 -
Scott Pryde
Expert
SHOT! That's fantastic from Millman. Opens the court up and then absolutely smokes the backhand down the line. Polansky 6 0 - 15 Millman 7 4 - 40
Scott Pryde
Expert
Millman is on his way now. Great work up to the net right there. Polansky 6 0 - 15 Millman 7 4 - 30
Scott Pryde
Expert
Polansky tries something a bit different here. Wide serve, then up to the net and he volleys a winner. Polansky 6 0 - 15 Millman 7 4 - 0
Scott Pryde
Expert
Body serve and Polansky returns long on the backhand here. Millman racing towards the finish line now. Polansky 6 0 - Millman 7 4 -
Scott Pryde
Expert
ACE! Polansky 6 0 - 0 Millman 7 3 - 40
Scott Pryde
Expert
Millman with a fault. The second is an ACE down the T. Polansky 6 0 - 0 Millman 7 3 - 30
Scott Pryde
Expert
Millman back on serve. He starts with a fault, then Polansky gets very, very lazy on the baseline, eventually sending a backhand long. Polansky 6 0 - 0 Millman 7 3 - 15
Scott Pryde
Expert
Millman up a set and a double break Polansky with yet another fault, then Millman hits a cracking shot cross court on the forehand to win the game and grab a double break. Polansky 6 0 - Millman 7 3 -
Scott Pryde
Expert
Another fault, then Millman returns with a backhand. He has to defend a little, but then hits a forehand with great depth which Polansky sends long. Polansky 6 0 - 0 Millman 7 2 - 40
Scott Pryde
Expert
Polansky is in all sorts. This could be all over in the next 15 minutes or so - another ball into the net. Polansky 6 0 - 0 Millman 7 2 - 30
Scott Pryde
Expert
Polansky to serve. He is really struggling just at the moment, defending after a great return, Millman eventually putting the corner forehand away. Polansky 6 0 - 0 Millman 7 2 - 15
Scott Pryde
Expert
ACE! Millman goes up the line and holds to love. Polansky 6 0 - Millman 7 2 -