Coco Gauff upset at Australian Open as Ash Barty drops just one game

The Australian Open got underway on Monday, with plenty of action already on the women’s side of the bracket.

World No. 1 Ash Barty started off strong in her quest for the title, defeating qualifier Lesia Tsurenko 6-0, 6-1 in just 54 minutes in her first-round matchup.

Statement made 💯

🇦🇺 @ashbarty drops just one game on her way to a 6-0 6-1 victory against Lesia Tsurenko to reach the #AusOpen second round.

🎥: @wwos • @espn • @Eurosport • @wowowtennis #AO2022 pic.twitter.com/OgTOXyun1c

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 17, 2022

Barty has been on a tear to begin the year. After winning the Adelaide 500 just over a week ago, the 25-year-old extended her winning streak to five matches and her streak of consecutive service holds to 42 on Monday.

Barty, who’s seeking to become the first Australian to win the Grand Slam on home soil since Chris O’Neil in 1978, will meet Lucia Bronzetti in the second round Tuesday. The Italian took down Varvara Gracheva 3-6, 6-2, 6-3 in the first round.

In another quarter of the bracket, Chian’s Wang Qiang upset No. 18 seed Coco Gauff 6-4, 6-2. The win was Wang’s first over a top-20 player since she defeated Serena Williams at the Australian Open in 2020. Gauff managed to save four match points after going down 5-0 on Monday, but the 17-year-old American couldn’t overcome her 38 unforced errors.

Elsewhere at Melbourne Park, defending champion Naomi Osaka posted a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Camila Osorio.

“I thought she played amazing,” Osaka said after the match. “Overall, I’m just happy to be here. I’m happy to see everybody in the audience, and I hope we gave you a great performance.”

Also victorious on Monday were No. 5 seed Maria Sakkari and No. 4 seed Barbora Krejcikova. Ninth-seeded Ons Jabeur was forced to withdraw from her match due to a back injury and was replaced by Romania’s Irina Bara.