Samantha Stosur and Casey Dellacqua have continued the hosts’ golden start to the Australian Open with impressive straight-sets first-round victories at Melbourne Park.
Australia’s only two seeds this year, Stosur outclassed unorthodox Romanian Monica Niculescu 6-4 6-1 in 79 minutes before Dellacqua dismissed Austrian Yvonne Meusburger 6-4 6-0 in barely an hour.
Seeded 29th after enjoying her best-ever season in 2014, Dellacqua belted 25 winners to Meusburger’s seven and dropped just eight points in the second set to prevail in 62 minutes.
Dellacqua can now look forward to a likely meeting on Thursday with rising American Madison Keys.
Stosur will play American Coco Vandeweghe, a 6-2 6-2 victor over Francesca Schiavone, with the former US Open champion bidding to progress beyond the fourth round for the first time in 13 attempts.
“Obviously I’ve had my struggles,” said Stosur, seeded 20th this year.
“There’s obviously a few more nerves here in a grand slam but I did alright.”
Wins for Stosur and Dellacqua give Australia nine players in the second round, with two more playing later on Tuesday.
With the pressure on to deliver after early exits – again – in Brisbane and Sydney, Stosur made an understandably nervous start, shanking a couple of groundstrokes early and having to save a break point in her second service game.
But once she adjusted to Niculescu’s unusual, squash-style forehand slice, she was able to dictate proceedings.
The one-time world No.4 broke the world No.48 in the ninth game and closed out the opening set with a perfect service game, landing four first deliveries to hold to love.
Stosur unleashed a stinging backhand pass and then a forehand winner to snare an early break in the second set before racing away with the match.
“The start of the match was quite tense from both of us,” Stosur said.
“Playing against Monica, it’s very different tennis. There were a lot of balls where there was no pace and I was really having to generate a lot of what was going on.
“If you’re a little bit tight at the start of a match, then it can be very tricky.
“But as the match went on I got more and more used to it and realised what was really working for me.”
Lining up for his 19th straight Open, Lleyton Hewitt meets Chinese wildcard Zhang Ze in the first night match on Rod Laver Arena before adopted Aussie Ana Tomjlanovic plays American qualifier Shelby Rogers.