SPORT lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll l l ntnews.com.au Monaco bundled out in shocker Venus proves she’s back No place like home for Tomic THE biggest scalp on the opening day of the VENUS Williams gave a strong hint yesterday that LEONARDO Mayer may need to morph into Roger was No.11 seed Juan Monaco, who she is on her way back to full fitness after a long and Federer or Andy Murray to have any hope of stopping was easily beaten by young Russian Andrey tiresome recovery from illness and injury. For much the Bernard Tomic express at the Australian Open Kuznetsov. Monaco continued his poor showing at of the past two years, Williams watched her ranking tonight. Federer and Murray, the Open’s second and Melbourne Park, succumbing in just under two hours, drop as she battled a hip injury and viral illness. But third seeds and winners of the past two grand slam 6-7 1-6 1-6. The Argentinian was coming off his best in her first round of the Australian Open, the singles titles and Olympic gold, are the only players in season after breaking into the Top 10 but he has American took just one hour to thrash Kazakhstan’s Tomic’s past 24 matches Down Under to take the always struggled at the Australian Open and was also world No.80 Galina Voskoboeva 6-1 6-0. ‘‘The stats 20-year-old down. Tomic’s remarkable run stretches a first-round casualty last year. looked good for me,’’ Williams said. back to September 2011.

Aussie hopeful bows out

FOR the second straight year, local hope Matthew Ebden has let slip a two- set lead at the Aust- ralian Open. The South African-born Ebden looked on course for an upset victory over No.23 seed Mikhail Youzhny on day one at Melbourne Park when he PUB: raced through the second- set tie break. But the Russian veteran TNEWS NT refused to yield, fighting off a match point in the 10th game of the fourth set before going on to win 4-6 6-7 (0-7) 6-2 7-6 (7-4) 6-3. Olivia Rogowska also got into a winning pos-

DATE: ition before bowing out 5-7 7-5 8-6 to Serbian qualifier . Rogowska led 3-0 and 4-1

15-JAN-2013 in the deciding set but couldn’t close the deal. Red-hot Agnieszka Rad- wanska started slowly be- fore defeating WA’s Bo- jana Bobusic. The Polish No.4 seed won the last nine games on the trot in her 7-5 6-0 victory. PAGE: Radwanska has been Teen sensation returns to women’s No. 15 seed Dominika Cibulkova. Barty lost in three sets Picture: WAYNE LUDBEY the form player in wom- en’s in the opening month of 2013. 36 Kiwi-turned-Australian Sacha Jones lost 6-3 6-2 to

COLOR: Kristyna Pliskova from the Czech Republic. was Fridge off her back another first round casu- alty, beaten 6-4 7-6 (7-0) by rising American star

C Madison Keys. Dellacqua had two set points at 5-4 in M Stosur takes victory in ugly and tense match the second set, but then

Y lost the last 11 points.

K TENNIS the Australian Open first this match,’’ he said. ‘‘Obvi- With that critical lead be- Teen star Ashleigh Barty By BRUCE MATTHEWS round. ously, it’s hard to prove that hind her, it seemed Stosur started brightly against ‘‘I wasn’t necessarily ex- when you’re not winning would power away when she women’s No. 15 seed Domini- SNAPSHOT A RELIEVED and realistic pecting everything to be per- those matches. But I did feel grabbed a 2-0 lead in the ka Cibulkova. SNAPSHOT of day one of the knew it fect today, so it wasn’t,’’ Sto- better and I think that second set. But the strangely But after dropping the first Australian Open at Melbourne Park yesterday: didn’t every approach the sur said after the 102 minutes showed today.’’ subdued crowd could never set, the Slovakian lifted to PLAYER OF THE DAY: Samantha standard expected of the test of nerve on Rod Laver It was often ugly and al- sit back and relax in the sun- reel off 12 of the next 13 ga- Stosur — the big local hope finally world’s top 10 elite. Arena. ways tense as Stosur strug- shine. mes and win 3-6 6-0 6-1. broke her summer duck to reach But a win, any win, was far The world No. 9 didn’t pass gled with a misfiring first ‘‘I was trying to do that ‘‘After I got that first set I the second round of the Open for the first time since 2011. more important than the the exam with honours, more serve and a dogged opponent (play with more freedom),’’ dropped off a little bit,’’ said KEY MOMENT: Holding match manner it was achieved at a B-plus tick against an op- in a wildly fluctuating open- she said. ‘‘Having gone Barty. ‘‘I think that was point in the 10th game of the Melbourne Park yesterday. ponent ranked 86 in the ing set. through that first set after be- nerves. fourth set, Australian wildcard Stosur lifted what someone world. The pair traded an untidy ing down a break quite a few ‘‘She was able to pounce on Matt Ebden misses a backhand pass before going down 4-6, 6-7, quaintly described as a But the Queenslander post- eight service breaks and both times and then getting me pretty quickly. That’s (0-7) 6-2, 7-6, (7-4) 6-3 to fridge off her broad ed her first win at home this served for that crucial set – through it was good. And why she’s ranked 15 in the Russian 23rd seed Mikhail shoulders with the fighting summer. Stosur at 5-3 and Chang at 6-5 then getting off to that quick world. Youzhny. 7-6 (7-3) 6-3 triumph against ‘‘I definitely feel like I im- – before the Australian domi- break in that second set gave ‘‘Once she got the momen- STAT OF THE DAY: After a last- minute move to the big stage of determined and dangerous proved throughout the last nated the inevitable tiebreak me that momentum to keep tum I wasn’t able to stop Rod Laver Arena, Australian teen Kai-Chen Chang of Taipei in couple of weeks coming into 7-3. going forward.’’ her.’’ star Ashleigh Barty lost 12 of the last 13 games in a 3-6, 6-0, 6-1 collapse against 15th-seeded Czech Dominika Cibulkova. QUOTE OF THE DAY: ‘‘I desperately wanted to win out Jockey Moon’s winning treble one with a difference there today. Obviously I feel very happy, a little bit relieved,’’ Stosur after collecting her first win in six HORSE RACING three winners on the four- beaten 10.9 lengths by Work (1100m) with Moon sitting in to the winner’s circle after matches in Australia, a sorry run By GREGOR MACTAGGART race horse racing card. The Body. the saddle. holding off Billyess by a that stretches back to last Catch As Catch Can, The seven-year-old mare, Catch As Catch Can bolted length and three-quarters. summer. TOURNAMENT SUMMARY: An CRAIG Moon proved he was Skystar and Return To were which was ridden by Chavas in by four lengths, in what Return To rounded out opening day free of drama and the star of the show with a for three different trainers in Johnson, gave trainer Rus- was to be his third consecu- Moon’s good day at the office upsets, with two-time defending winning treble in Sunday’s an illustration of the demand sell Bell the opening leg of a tive win. in the Red Centre Office champion Novak Djokovic, along Red Centre meeting at Pion- for Moon’s services. winning double. Skystar finally broke Technology Rating 64 Handi- with Czech pretender Tomas Berdych, advancing in the men’s eer Park. They came after Moon had The second leg was the im- through for an overdue suc- cap (1000m). event and last year’s runner-up The multiple premiership- the ride on $2.70 favourite pressive Catch As Catch cess in the Caltex Indervon The seven-year-old secured Maria Sharapova leading winning jockey bounced Rocket Brother in the open- Can, who made light work of Maiden (1100m). his fifth career win when he Agnieszka Radwanska, and into the second back from an early disap- ing race, but the newcomer the Lasseters Hotel Casino At start number 26, held off So Real by a length round of the women’s event. pointment to claim the final laboured into sixth place, Benchmark 68 Handicap Skystar finally made her way and a half.

36 NT NEWS. Tuesday, January 15, 2013. www.ntnews.com.au