Australian Open kicks off, Sinner hunting for third consecutive title
Alcaraz, who made his debut by overcoming Walton, is looking for his first trophy in Melbourne; Jannik will play Gaston on Tuesday. Out in the first round Flavio Cobolli, ahead Jasmine Paolini
by Eliana Di Caro
After exhibitions and games such as the Million Dollar One Point Slam, the "real" tennis kicked off with the first Slam of the year in Melbourne: World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz, who has never lifted the trophy here (the only one he lacks for the Career Slam), made his debut straight away by beating Australian Adam Walton in just over two hours (6-3, 7-6, 6-2 the score). Jannik Sinner, who is aiming for a third consecutive Australian Open triumph, finds Frenchman Hugo Gaston in the first round on Tuesday.
The first surprise came in the night: Flavio Cobolli lost to British player Arthur Fery, world number 185 from the qualifiers, in three sets (7-6, 6-4, 6-1), partly due to intestinal problems that jeopardised the match. Jasmine Paolini, on the other hand, was ahead, beating Belarusian Aliaksandra Sasnovich 6-1, 6-2 in the first round (in the only direct clash, dating back to 2020, the Italian had prevailed). The Italian patrol includes Lorenzo Musetti - fresh number 5 in the ranking - Luciano Darderi, Lorenzo Sonego, Matteo Arnaldi, Mattia Bellucci, Luca Nardi and Francesco Maestrelli (coming from the qualifications). On the women's side there is also Elisabetta Cocciaretto, fresh from her victory in the Hobart tournament. Matteo Berrettini, on the other hand, has announced his retirement due to injury.
The eyes of fans and enthusiasts are on the Alcaraz-Sinner challenge, whose duopoly was definitively established last year. Carlos is playing in Melbourne for the first time without the gaze of Ferrero, the historic coach who took him to the top, from whom he surprisingly parted ways in December. Sinner, who won his last real match against the Spaniard (the Atp Finals final), net of exhibitions, is the defending champion with 2,000 points to defend. On his way could be, in the third round, what many see as the possible third wheel, the Brazilian João Fonseca.
Up for grabs for the title, both men's and women's, is a cheque for over two and a half million euros (whoever makes it to the finals gets over 1.2 million euros).
