Six-time Australian Open champions Serena Williams and Novak Djokovic target record-breaking titles with straight-set wins.
It may seem straightforward but it was not routine, Associated Press reports. While Djokovic and Williams ran out of steam last year, the two greats are set to start as favorites in Melbourne as they confronted former top-10 players in the first round. Newly-engaged Williams is aiming to exceed Steffi Graf's record of 22 Grand Slam titles in the Open era and Djokovic, on the other hand, is bidding to be the first man to win seven Australian Open titles.
Djokovic faced Fernando Verdasco in a 71-minute, momentum-swinging second set before winning 6-1, 7-6 (4), 6-2 on Tuesday. The first and third sets were great, he said, but the second was "a gamble." Djokovic is aware of Verdasco threat as the bid for the seventh title begins. The Spanish left-hander Verdasco placed 7th in the 2009 rankings and has beaten Rafael Nadal last year in one of the best and latest-finishing semifinals ever at the Australian Open.
Meanwhile, Williams took a 5-0 lead in the second set against Belinda Bencic. The Swiss tennis player is not so bad herself having ranked in the top 10 and seeded 12th in Melbourne last year. She applied pressure on Williams, who made mistakes on key points - including a double-fault to give Bencic a break point, and another on her first match point - before recovering to win 6-4, 6-3.
Earlier this year, the 35-year-old tennis pro announced she was engaged to Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian. She opened up for the first time about her wedding plans during a press conference following her first round victory. Williams told the press that she will be looking at the bigger picture in February but as of now focus is what she can think about. Focus indeed, as she will be up facing Lucie Safarova in the second round, who saved nine match points in a 3-6, 7-6 (7), 6-1 win over Yanina Wickmayer.
Still anything can happen, after all, the Australian Open wasn't always a champion's championship. ESPN noted that for the past eight years, the finalists in the Australian Open were Grand Slam champions except for a few such as Stan Wawrinka, Dinara Safina and Dominika Cibulkova who still has a chance to punch through.
