The good news for those who view the first grand slam tournament of the year through a strictly local prism is they finally have another Australian winner.
The bad news is that Ben Mitchell had to become yet another Australian fall guy before close friend James Duckworth could book his spot in the second round.
The long-time buddies and training partners slugged it out for almost four-and-a-half hours before Duckworth triumphed over fellow wildcard Mitchell 6-4 7-6 (10-8) 4-6 5-7 8-6.
Many of the crowd crammed into showcourt two didn’t quite know who to cheer for.
But at least they got to see an Australian salute at the end of the match – a rare sight at Melbourne Park this week after Samantha Stosur was the only one of the first 11 local hopes to emerge victorious.
Todd Woodbridge, the director of Australian men’s tennis, said it reminded him of a clash he had with good mate Jason Stoltenberg back in 1988 at Melbourne Park when they were both teenagers starting out their careers.
When asked by fellow commentator John Newcombe who won that day, Woodbridge said he had done so. Otherwise, why would he have mentioned it in the first place?
Duckworth will probably feel just as happy to talk it up in years to come.
But in the immediate aftermath of Tuesday’s win, Duckworth was careful not to sound at all boastful after ousting his friend.
“It’s tough because Benny is one of my closest mates on tour,” said Duckworth.
“We have known each other since we were about 10.
“We practiced together, we’ve had the same coach (Brent Larkham) for the last couple of years.
“You want the best for them, but at the same time you have a job to do.”
The local cheerleaders at Melbourne Park had no need to be anywhere near as reticent.
After all, they got the the chance to give Advance Australia Fair a rare airing.