On Day 2 of the 2024 Australian Open, Dayana Yastremska produced the biggest upset of the event so far, dispatching No.7 seed Marketa Vondrousova in commanding fashion. The Ukrainian, a former world No.21 and a qualifier this year, dominated the reigning Wimbledon champion with a swift 6-1 6-2 victory, marking the first Top 10 upset of the competition.
The 23-year-old Yastremska hit 26 winners compared to Vondrousova’s five and broke serve five times. The world No.93 finally ended her streak of consecutive first-round exits in the past seven Grand Slam tournaments, as Vondrousova struggled on serve throughout, hitting seven double faults and failing to find her rhythm. Yastremska, who endured a six-month doping accusation ordeal in 2021, will play the second round of a major for the first time since the 2020 US Open.
This triumph marks Yastremska’s fourth career win against a Top 10 player, and notably, her first at a Grand Slam. It has to be said that Vondrousova was playing her first tournament of the season, having missed last week’s Adelaide International due to a right hip injury.
During the post-match interview, Yastremska emotionally addressed the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, sharing a personal story about a rocket hitting her grandmother’s house while she was playing in Brisbane earlier in the month. She expressed gratitude for the support and emphasized the importance of remembering and supporting Ukraine during these challenging times.
In other notable matches, seed No.19 Elina Svitolina, who missed the Australian Open last year while being on maternity leave, returned triumphantly by defeating Australian wildcard Taylah Preston with a decisive score of 6-2 6-2. Coco Gauff dominantly started her quest for a second straight Grand Slam title with a 6-3 6-0 victory over Anna Karolina Schmiedlova.
Later on Monday, the highly-anticipated comeback of four-time major winner Naomi Osaka takes center stage. Following the birth of her daughter, the former world No.1 is set to face Caroline Garcia of France in the first round, in the last match scheduled on Rod Laver Arena.
I notice Yonex has made her an outfit in the Ukrainian colours. That’s nice.
CLT, Yastremska is wearing the new Yonex collection, her kit is the same as Garcia’s. The photo in my article is not from the AO, as I didn’t have one.