Gadecki claims first Grand Slam singles win, Hunter and Gibson are out

Olivia Gadecki had an impressive performance take her into the second round for the first time at at Grand Slam in singles.

The Queenslander defeated Polina Kudermetova, a qualifier, 7-5, 6-1.

Gadecki only faced one break point throughout the match and she was able to break three times to claim a memorable win.

“The crowd was amazing today,” Gadecki said.

“I feel like in the past I’ve kind of kept to myself a bit. Today I just wanted to kind of let them in and really embrace the crowd. It’s such a once-in-a-lifetime sort of moment. So I’m really thankful for the crowd. They got me over the line.”

Finishing with seven aces and 19 winners, Gadecki also conceded only nine points on serve in a confident performance.

“My serve is one of my greatest strengths, so to have that when I’m feeling a little bit nervous or anxious out there is always something I really, really like,” she said.

In other women’s singles action on the opening day, French qualifier Clara Burel proved too strong for 18-year-old wildcard Talia Gibson, scoring a 6-3, 6-4 victory in their first-round clash.

Gibson produced a gallant performance, but 41 unforced errors proved costly in the 79-minute encounter.

While China’s Wang Xinyu proved too strong for Storm Hunter, scoring a 7-6(2), 6-4 in their opening-round meeting.