Ofner also failed after a five-set marathon

On Monday, Dominic Thiem had to bow to the Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime after a five-set thriller, and yesterday Sebastian Ofner was also caught in the first round of the Australian Open. The world number 37. In his premiere in the main competition of the first tennis Grand Slam tournament of the year, local hero Thanasi Kokkinakis narrowly lost after 4:18 hours with 6:7 (1), 6:2, 7:6 (4), 1:6, 8 :10.

Ofner had previously failed to qualify for Melbourne five times. This time the 27-year-old was qualified for round one due to his advance in the rankings. That’s why on paper he was the favorite going into the first encounter with the world number 80, but just couldn’t do justice to that in the John Cain Arena. A few points made the difference. “If it were like that again, I would perhaps have the courage to play a little more aggressively, especially in the Champions tiebreak,” said Ofner. He didn’t have much to blame himself for. Above all, Kokkinakis served incredibly well. “It was so difficult, he gave me so little room to attack with his service,” said the Styrian. In the end there was the right winner for the fans. “It was a real fight. He is a very good player, with a lot of power in his shots. He showed why he is number 37 in the world,” Kokkinakis praised the loser.

The tournament is not over for Ofner, who will now have his next singles appearance in the Davis Cup against Ireland (February 2nd to 4th), as he is playing doubles with the Frenchman Alexandre Müller. Alexander Erler/Lucas Miedler are also trying their luck in the competition. Sam Weissborn and his Monegasque partner Romain Arneodo were eliminated in the first round yesterday.

Controversial ambassador role

Rafael Nadal, who was missing in Melbourne, is the new ambassador for the Saudi Arabian Tennis Association. The 22-time Grand Slam winner’s role will see the Spaniard spend time in the kingdom annually to train children and increase interest in the sport. A training academy is also planned, the association said. “Everywhere you look in Saudi Arabia you see growth and progress. I’m happy to be a part of it,” said Nadal.

The men’s ATP Tour announced last August that the Next Gen Finals for U21 players would be held in Jeddah until 2027. The WTA women’s tour could also hold its finals in Saudi Arabia in the future; discussions are currently underway. However, WTA chairman Steve Simon emphasized that the country poses “big problems” as a venue. World number one Iga Swiatek also sees it that way. She didn’t know about Nadal’s decision. “Apparently men’s sport has already arrived in Saudi Arabia. I don’t know whether that’s a good decision or not,” said the Polish woman.

Australian Open (Grand Slam, 52.95 million euros, hard): Men, 1st round: Kokkinakis (Aus) – Ofner (Ö) 7:6 (1), 2:6, 6:7 (4), 6 :1, 10:8, Rune (Den/8) – Nishioka (Jpn) 6:2, 4:6, 7:6 (3), 6:4, Ruud (Nor/11) – Ramos-Vinolas (Sp) 6:1, 6:3, 6:1, Dimitrov (Bul/13) – Fucsovics (Ung) 4:6, 6:3, 7:6 (1), 6:2, Paul (USA/14) – Barrere (Fra) 6:2, 6:3, 6:3; Doubles: Bolelli/Vavassori (It) – Arneodo/Weissborn (Mon/Ö) 3:6, 6:3, 7:6 (7); Women, 1st round: Swiatek (Pol/1) – Kenin (USA) 7:6 (2), 6:2, Rybakina (Kaz/3) – Pliskova (Tch) 7:6 (6), 6:4, Ostapenko (Lat/11) – Birrell (Aus) 7:6 (5), 6:1, Zheng (Chn/12) – Krueger (USA) 3:6, 6:2, 6:3.

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