Elena Rybakina blitzes 16-year-old Emerson Jones, 17-year-old Iva Jovic awaits at Australian Open
The No. 6 seed, who confirmed Stefano Vukov was not in attendance, needed just 53 minutes in her first Grand Slam match with coach Goran Ivanisevic Tuesday.
On Tuesday, 2023 Australian Open finalist Elena Rybakina blasted past 16-year-old wild card Emerson Jones at Melbourne Park to win her first Grand Slam match with coach Goran Ivanisevic in her corner.
Come Thursday, the No. 6 seed will meet another teen talent in 17-year-old wild card Iva Jovic of Torrance, Calif.
Rybakina needed just 53 minutes on the court, as her serve and sheer power overwhelmed the Gold Coast native. The 2022 Wimbledon champion fired 11 aces and 0 double faults, while saving all three break points she faced in cruising to a 6-1, 6-1 victory against Jones.
"Of course, I knew that people want to support (an) Australian. She's very young," Rybakina told press. "I knew that I'm going to have a lot of opportunities. So I was kind of prepared for anything."
Ivanisevic, who joined Rybakina last November in a move later lauded by his former pupil Novak Djokovic, was courtside for the emphatic win. During the pair’s first event together at the United Cup, the Croatian was reportedly left blindsided by Rybakina’s announcement that she had re-hired ex-coach Stefano Vukov to come back as a contributing team member.
Vukov is currently under a provisional suspension by the WTA while being investigated for a potential breach of the tour’s code of conduct and is ineligible to be credentialed in Melbourne.
"He was not in the match today," confirmed Rybakina. "I speak with him, of course, and same with Goran. So I got a bit of advice, and also I met the other girl who played with her just recently, the previous tournament, so a bit few words from them."
Jovic also produced a dominant performance in an Australian Open debut to remember. In the main draw by virtue of earning a spot via the USTA’s Australian Open Wild Card Challenge, Jovic trounced Nuria Parrizas Diaz, 6-2, 6-1, after 86 minutes.
The world No. 191 was dialed-in from start to finish, capping her day with 25 winners to just 12 unforced errors.
When she was 16 at last year’s US Open, Jovic won her Grand Slam debut before falling to No. 29 seed Ekaterina Alexandrova, 7-5 in the third. Just before that showing, she signed with Naomi Osaka’s management company, Evolve.
Learner Tien, who came through qualifying, matched Jovic in securing a victorious maiden appearance.
The 19-year-old hailing from Irvine, Calif. battled past Camilo Ugo Carabelli, 4-6, 7-6 (3), 6-3, 5-7, 6-4, in three hours and 56 minutes. It marked Tien’s first five-set contest, as he now awaits the winner of three-time runner-up Daniil Medvedev and Thai wild card Kasidit Samrej.