BARTY BAGELS, NADAL MAGIC ON DISPLAY AT AUSSIE OPEN

MELBOURNE: Rafael Nadal’s injured back didn’t slow down his bid for a record 21st Grand Slam title on Tuesday, as women’s world No 1 Ashleigh Barty romped to a 6-0, 6-0 ‘double bagel’ at the Australian Open.

On a day when women’s champion Sofia Kenin also reached round two, but two-time winner Victoria Azarenka lost after breathing problems, Nadal and Barty were the headline acts at the coronavirus-delayed Slam.

Spanish great Nadal, who pulled out of last year’s ATP Cup with back problems, beat Serbia’s Laslo Djere 6-3, 6-4, 6-1 in one hour and 52 minutes.

“It’s been a tough 15 days for me,” said the 2009 champion, whose back stiffness first flared during an exhibition match last month. Russia’s Daniil Medvedev extended his winning streak to 15 matches with an emphatic 6-2, 6-2, 6-4 victory over Canada’s Vasek Pospisil.

Russian seventh seed Andrey Rublev also continued his winning start to the year with a win over German Yannick Hanfmann 6-3, 6-3, 6-4.

Barty later outclassed Montenegro’s Danka Kovinic, losing only 10 points as she raced into round two in just 44 minutes.

With the win Barty, last year’s semi-finalist, ramped up hopes of a first Australian women’s winner in 43 years. Women’s champion Kenin was less convincing and she audibly vented her frustrations during her 7-5, 6-4 against Australian Maddison Inglis, who is ranked outside the top 100. Two-time major-winner Garbine Muguruza had little trouble beating Russia’s Margarita Gasparyan 6-4, 6-0.

But there were distressing scenes as an ailing Azarenka, the 2012 and 2013 champion, went out to Jessica Pegula. Azarenka, who was one of the players locked down in hard quarantine pre-tournament and not allowed out of her room for 14 days, began to suffer in the second set. The 2020 US Open runner-up was seen gasping and using an inhaler, and then looked close to collapse on court. After a medical timeout she played on but lost 7-5, 6-4.