Biggest Upsets In Australian Open History

The first Grand slam of the year, the Australian Open kickstarted on Sunday 14th of January in Melbourne. There have been some good matches that have caught fans’ attention. The youngster Maria Andreeva has put out the biggest result so far defeating the sixth seed Ons Jabeur. It is a huge victory for Andreeva, who was a junior Champion in the same tournament last year. Let’s take a look at some of the biggest upsets in the tournament’s history.

Rafael Nadal’s Second-round Loss To Mackenzie McDonald (2023)

In the 2023 edition of the Australian Open, Rafael Nadal arrived as the prime favorite to win the title. This comes after he had won the title in the previous year and entered the draw as the top seed. Before the tournament, his form was not convincing as he had lost three of the last four matches. The 36-year-old Spanish international met unseeded Mackenzie McDonald in the second. Having lost the first set 6-4, Nadal suffered a hip injury in the second round. Despite being in pain, the 22 Grand Slam winner continued with the match and ended up losing on a straight set 6-4, 6-4, 7-5. In the press conference, he stated ” Can’t say I’m not mentally destroyed at this time, because I will be lying. It’s hard for me, “

Denis Istomin Stuns Novak Djokovic (2017 second round)

Novak Djokovic entered the Australian Open main draw as the six-time champion in 2017 and was fancied to reign supreme. He was the second-seeded player in the first round and had to face Fernando Verdasco. The Serb had no problems cruising past the opponent with ease. Then In the second round, he was up against World 117th-ranked player Denis Istomin. With so many expecting Djokovic to continue with his fine form, he was thrown into the titanic battle. Istomin had received the wildcard into the tournament as being the Asian player. In the end, Istomin prevailed in the tense five sets show. That match will be so hard to forget for Djokovic.

Pete Sampras Was Beaten At His Own Game In The Third-round (1996)

Pete Sampras is regarded as one of the greatest tennis players of all time. In the ’90s, he dominated the game so much and was without a doubt the best player in the era. He entered the 1996 Australian Open carrying a favorite tag plus he was the number one ranked player in the world. In the third round, he came against the 19-year-old Australian Mark Phillippousissis. As the explosive server of note, Sampras was dominated largely by the power of shots thrown at him on the day. Phillippousissis took 28 aces on his way to snatch a remarkable win. In the following year, Sampras went on to win his second Australian title in his career.

Lleyton Hewitt Bites The Dust In The First-round (2002)

Australian ace Lleyton Hewitt was on top of the world before the start of the 2002 competition. He had spectacularly closed the year winning 22 out of his 23 games on hard court. In that process, he clinched the 2001 US Open title. As the top seed, playing in front of the home fans, it was expected that he would become unstoppable. Meet 39th-rankedked player Alberto Martin in the first round, It was a game expected to go his way. In the end, Martin pulled an upset to defeat the home favorite in the straight set. Hewitt said to the media, that he had not fully recovered from Chickenpox, which he suffered a week before the tournament. It was a tournament full of surprises as all top four seeds in the men’s draw got dumped in the first round.

Sloane Stephens Gets Revenge Over Serena Williams (2013)

Serena Williams arrived in Melbourne and was expected to continue their fine form. Building up to the tournament she had won the Brisbane International Open title. On her way to securing that title, she had defeated Sloane Stephens in the quarter-finals. In that match, Williams praised the level of competitiveness shown by her opponent on the day. The two met once again in the Australian Open quarter-finals. The 19-year-old Stephens was one set down and was defending a set point as she was in danger of crashing out. But she pulled a historic fightback to win the match in three sets. She eventually lost in the semi-finals to the Champion Victoria Azarenka in the end.

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