BARTY, NADAL ON TRACK
MELBOURNE, Australia—ash Barty was front and center when the Australian Open celebrated its inaugural First Nations Day.
Albeit not for very long. The top-ranked Barty has Indigenous heritage and her second-round match at Melbourne Park’s main stadium on Wednesday was among the features of a program dedicated to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people of Australia.
She was on and off the court quickly, beating 142nd-ranked qualifier Lucia Bronzetti, 6-1, 6-1, in 52 minutes.
“It was really cool. It was nice for me to be a part of it in a way that I feel most comfortable,” Barty said. “Out on the tennis court is how I express myself as an athlete, it’s how I’m able to express myself as a person as well.
“On a day we’re bringing cultures together, bringing people together... it was great for me to be able to play a small role doing what I love.”
Rafael Nadal didn’t get it all his own way in the next match on Rod Laver Arena, needing five match points before beating 126thranked German qualifier Yannick Hanfmann, 6-2, 6-3, 6-4.
The sixth-seeded Nadal, aiming for a men’s record 21st Grand Slam singles title, had two match points on Hanfmann’s serve and two more on his own in the next game before finally clinching a spot in the third round when his rival sent a forehand long.
Nadal converted four of his 16 break-point chances, including one of eight in the third set, but only faced two break points on his own serve and fended them both off.
For the 35-year-old Nadal, after fatigue and injuries curtailed his 2021 season following the French Open, the time on court is more important than anything else.
“I said here before the tournament started, things are not going to be perfect, but every day that I’m going to spend on court, the chances to play better are higher,” he said. “After two matches is the moment to make a step forward. I’m excited about it.”
Nadal shares the men’s record of 20 singles titles with Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, and he doesn’t have either of them in the draw this time.
Federer is skipping the Australian Open while he continues his recovery from injury. Djokovic, a nine-time champion at Melbourne Park, was deported after an 11-day saga that he ultimately lost because he didn’t meet Australia’s strict Covid-19vaccination regulations.
Miomir Kecmanovic, who was originally drawn to meet Djokovic on the opening night, advanced to the third round with a 7-6 (7), 7-5, 7-6 (8) win over Tommy Paul of the United States.
No. 7 Matteo Berrettini and No. 23 Reilly Opelka advanced in straight sets, while No. 19 Pablo Carreno Busta beat Tallon Griekspoor, 6-3, 6-7 (6), 7-6 (3), 3-6, 6-4.
In two marathon five-setters, No. 14 Denis Shapovalov held off Kwon Soon-woo, 7-6 (6), 6-7 (3), 6-7 (6), 7-5, 6-2, in four hours and 25 minutes on Margaret Court Arena, and former Australian Open juniors winner Sebastian Korda edged Corentin Moutet, 3-6, 6-4, 6-7 (2), 7-5, 7-6 (6), in 4:47.
Barty extended her streak of service holds to 48 games and moved into the third round at Melbourne Park for the sixth consecutive year.
The 2021 Wimbledon and 2019 French Open champion dropped just one game in her first-round match, which also took less than an hour, as she bids to become the first Australian woman since 1978 to win the country’s Grand Slam tournament.
Next up for Barty will be a match against another Italian, 30th-seeded Camila Giorgi. Win that, and Barty could end up in a fourth-round showdown against defending champion Naomi Osaka.
The 13th-seeded Osaka was playing Madison Brengle later Wednesday, with the winner advancing to a third-round match against Amanda Anisimova, who ousted Olympic champion Belinda Bencic 6-2, 7-5.