Australian wildcard Priscilla Hon has scored the biggest win over her career, upsetting two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova to reach the second round of the Adelaide International.
Hon recovered from a set and a break down to beat the 17th-ranked Czech 6-7(4) 7-5 6-2, her first ever victory over a top-40 opponent.
It capped a magnificent day for the host nation at the Memorial Drive Tennis Centre; Ajla Tomljanovic joined Hon in the second round with a 6-4 7-6(5) win over Heather Watson.
> DRAW: Adelaide International women’s singles
Earlier on Monday, Australians Daria Saville and Maddison Inglis won their final-round qualifying matches; Inglis rolled to a 6-1 6-4 triumph over Irene Burillo Escorihuela while Saville fought off Britain’s Katie Boulter 7-5 3-6 6-4.
South Australian teenager Charlotte Kempenaers-Pocz came close to matching them before falling 3-6 6-3 6-3 to Ulrikke Eikeri of Norway.
Inglis will meet Shelby Rogers in her first round match while Saville faces defending champion Iga Swiatek.
> RELATED: Bolt, Kokkinakis to headline Tuesday schedule in Adelaide, Barty Wednesday
The winner of Swiatek-Saville will progress to a second-round showdown with Leylah Fernandez, who began her season strongly with a 6-3 6-4 win over Ekaterina Alexandrova on Monday evening.
The 2021 US Open finalist has now won 13 of her past 16 matches but told adelaideinternational.com.au that she “totally forgot” what she did last year.
“That’s what I’ve been taught from the very beginning, that what happened yesterday doesn’t matter – it’s what I do today that counts. I’m very happy with the start of the season because it’s a good step forward to 2022,” she said.
“I think the one thing I was very happy about (tonight) was just me being calm, just trying to find my rhythm of the match. In practice I’ve been training very well but a tennis match is completely different, there’s a little bit more pressure.
“I was able to manage that really well and just try to figure things out on the go.”
But it was Hon who arguably hogged the limelight on Monday night in Adelaide.
The world No.263 played with poise and clarity, served strongly, countered Kvitova’s power with heavy shot-making of her own, and showed off athletic defence to eventually wear the former world No.2 down.
yes!!!! this was epic! i was screaming !!! https://t.co/1zcUAqnp17
— Daria Saville (@Daria_gav) January 3, 2022
“It doesn’t really feel real right now. Will probably sink in later. But I’m just so happy right now. I can’t even explain how much I’ve been waiting for this moment,” said Hon, who trailed Kvitova 4-2 in the second set.
“Pretty proud of how I held up at the end. I’ve been working really hard at that and staying calm, and obviously against the top players they don’t give it to you, so you’ve got to really work hard for it.
“I’ve been working on that (my mindset). But it’s been tough over the years playing top girls, and thinking that you can actually beat them is a different story.
“I was (also) injured for almost a year, so I think I was even more pumped to come back on tour and just focus on what I’ve been wanting to the last couple of years, and really seeing it happen tonight has proved that it’s working.”
Sakkari: “I didn’t play my best, but I found ways to win”
In the first match of the day on Centre Court, third seed Maria Sakkari opened her 2022 season with a gritty three-set win over Tamara Zidansek to reach the second round.
In a battle between last year’s Roland Garros semifinalists, Sakkari rebounded from a forgettable second set to record a 6-2 0-6 6-4 victory.
It sets up a meeting with either Rogers or Inglis, and takes her a step closer to a projected quarterfinal meeting with seventh seed Elena Rybakina.
Rybakina followed Sakkari onto Centre Court and overcame rapidly-improving Aussie wildcard Storm Sanders in three sets.
Greece’s Sakkari entered Adelaide riding high from a career-best season in 2021, during which she reached two Grand Slam semifinals and capped her season with a strong showing at the WTA Finals.
But the world No.6 struggled for consistency and rhythm against Zidansek, battling for more than two hours to see off the Slovene – including 47 minutes alone to take the opening set.
She showed no reaction when she broke Zidansek at love to seal victory, admitting on court afterward that she “didn’t feel great” and that “it wasn’t a good match from my side”.
Yet the momentum and confidence she has accumulated after winning almost 40 matches in 2021 ultimately shone through.
https://twitter.com/WTA/status/1477867583147700224
“I knew that it was going to be a very tough match, because she had a great season last year and she has beaten some very good opponents last couple of seasons,” Sakkari told adelaideinternational.com.au.
“I didn’t play my best tennis, but I found ways to win, and found the right tactic to win, which is what I take from the match, and that’s what I’ll try to do in my second match as well.”
ATP action gets underway
In other results, No.8 seed Soonwoo Kwon of South Korea was the first player through to the second round of the ATP event in Adelaide, thanks to a commanding win over Yoshihito Nishioka.
Brazil’s Thiago Monteiro later followed him through to the last 16 while promising Danish teenager Holger Rune, on the cusp of the top 100, qualified for the main draw with a 6-2 6-3 win over Juan Pablo Varillas.
> DRAW: Adelaide International men’s singles
Seventh seed Laslo Djere later beat Roberto Carballes Baena in two tight sets.