Heather Watson and Laura Robson suffered first round defeats as the 2014 Australian Open got underway in Melbourne Park.
Watson, who came through three rounds of qualifying, lost a close three set contest to No.31 seed Daniela Hantuchova 6-3, 5-7, 6-3. In a back and forth match that had nine breaks of serve it was the Slovakian who eventually prevailed to move into the second round.
Reflecting on the match Watson said: “I felt I was close throughout the match… I feel like it’s an opportunity lost for me. I really looked forward to this draw, but I’ve played 10 matches already this year – if you’d told me that last year I would have taken it in a second…I’ve had a good start to the year, I’ve improved as a player, and it’s been a positive few weeks.”
Robson, whose start to the year has been disrupted by a wrist injury, fell to No.18 Kirsten Flipkens 6-3, 6-0 in 50 minutes.
“It was up and down the whole time, and I don’t think I ever really got into a rhythm at all.” Robson said after the match. “It just didn’t go well. I definitely expected to play better, but it happens. I didn’t really have any expectations going in because I didn’t know what it was going to be like out there.”
Andy Murray's Australian Open campaign begins on Tuesday as he takes on Japan's Go Soeda, with the doubles due to get underway later in the week.
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