File photo of Casper Ruud© AFP
Second seed Casper Ruud was sent packing from the Australian Open second round Thursday and with it his dream of becoming world number one, losing to hard-hitting American Jenson Brooksby. The Norwegian, who took a medical timeout after the second set, succumbed 6-3, 7-5, 6-7 (4/7), 6-2 to the 39th-ranked player on Rod Laver Arena. Ruud saved multiple match points to force a tie-break, which he eventually won to pull one set back against his American opponent.
However, he was broken early in the fourth set, and was unable to make a comeback this time as Brooksby booked his passage into the next round.
Earlier, fifth seed Andrey Rublev eased his way into the third round after outclassing Emil Ruusuvuori in four sets. After winnings the first two sets, Rublev was broken by his Ruusuvuori, who eventually took the third set. However, Rublev made the most of his experience and didn’t give his opponent any room for a comeback.
Also, Aryna Sabalenka showed why she is a serious contender for the Australian Open by powering into the third round of the women’s singles. The Belarusian swept past 51st-ranked American Shelby Rogers 6-3, 6-1 in an hour and 27 minutes on Rod Laver Arena.
Sabalenka, who reached the semi-finals at the US Open last year, extended her 2023 unbeaten record to six matches after winning the recent Adelaide International without dropping a set.
(With AFP Inputs)
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