SPAIN’S RAFAEL NADAL makes a forehand return to Argentina’s Leonardo Mayer during their second round match at the Australian Open tennis championships in Melbourne, Australia on Wednesday.
Rafael Nadal had to wait while Caroline Wozniacki saved two match points and worked her way back into the Australian Open in the preceding match on Rod Laver Arena.
Nadal, the 2017 runner-up, wasted no time in reaching the third round, dropping only one service game — while serving for the match — and making just 10 unforced errors in a 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (4) win over Leonardo Mayer on Wednesday.
There was more drama earlier on the center court and Margaret Court Arena, when second-seeded Wozniacki and 2008 runner-up Jo- Wilfried Tsonga had to come back from big deficits.
Wozniacki was 5-1 down and facing two match points in third set against No. 119- ranked Jana Fett before deciding she had no choice but to attack.
Wozniacki won the next nine points, and 24 of the 31 points played from when she first faced match point. She clinched a 75-minute third set on her first match point when Fett netted a backhand.
The former No. 1-ranked Wozniacki will next play No. 30 Kiki Bertens, who beat Nicole Gibbs 7-6 (3), 6-0.
In what shapes as an entertaining showdown, he’ll meet No. 17-seeded Nick Kyrgios in the next round.
And 38-year-old Ivo Karlovic overcame Yuichi Sugita 7-6 (3), 6-7 (3), 7-5, 4-6, 12-10.
Marta Kostyuk came from the other angle. The 15-yearold qualifier followed up her first-round win over 25thseeded Peng Shuai with a 6-3, 7-5 victory over wild-card entry Olivia Rogowska.
The Australian Open junior champion last year, who entered the season opening major ranked No. 521, Kostyuk became the youngest player since Martina Hingis in 1996 to win main draw matches at the season-opening major.
No. 42-ranked Cornet had taken only one set in five previous losses to Goerges, who was on a 15-match winning streak after her opening win at Melbourne Park.
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