Ana Ivanovic falls to Lucie Hradecka in Australian Open
MELBOURNE – The first upset victim is gone in the Australian Open 2015 as No. 5 seed Ana Ivanovic crashed out in her opening match Monday against a Czech qualifier. Here's how it happened.
Scoreline: [Q] Lucie Hradecka (CZE) def. [5] Ana Ivanovic (SRB) 1-6, 6-3, 6-2
A quarterfinalist here a year ago (when she took out Serena Williams) and a former world No. 1 and Grand Slam champion, Ivanovic served as the first cautionary tale of the Australian Open this year, crashing out in the first round to a qualifier ranked No. 142 in the world.
What it means: Ivanovic's section – she was the highest seed in her part of the draw – is now wide open after No. 32 seed Belinda Bencic, due to meet Ivanovic in round three, also lost on Monday. Ekaterina Makarova, the Russian seeded No. 10, is now the de facto favorite to make it through to the quarterfinals and face No. 3 Simona Halep, the Romanian, should their seeds hold. This is the bottom half of the draw, which includes No. 2 Maria Sharapova.
How it happened: Ivanovic started hot, winning the first set in just 21 minutes inside Rod Laver Arena behind her booming forehand. But the Serbian who won the French Open in 2008 and was a finalist here that same year couldn't find her range in sets two and three, her game going off and the unforced efforts bundling to a total of 30.
Significance?: Will Ivanovic ever turn it around? She was a Grand Slam champion and world No. 1 by the age of 20, but has had struggles throughout her career in the last five years, dipping as low as No. 63 in the world in 2010. She was seeded No. 5, her highest since the Australian Open in 2009, but her inconsistencies appear to be inescapable. She loses in the first round of a major for just the fifth time in 41 appearances.
Key stat of the match: Hradecka, once ranked as high as No. 41, is known as a doubles specialist and utilized that, going 19 for 23 at the net (a whopping 83 percent) to take away the longer rallies from a more agile Ivanovic. The Czech was also a perfect five for five on break points converted.
What she said: "I think the whole match I didn't really feel like myself out there," Ivanovic told reporters after the loss. "It was really tough for me to find [my] rhythm. It's really disappointing. You know, it's probably the worst thing [that] could happen."