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Venus slumps to first round Australian Open defeat
(Reuters)
Updated: 2006-01-16 15:42
MELBOURNE, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Venus Williams tumbled out of the Australian
Open on Monday after a shock defeat to little-known Bulgarian teenager Tszvetana
Pironkova.
Williams of US
reacts to having her serve broken by Pironkova of Bulgaria at Australian
Open in Melbourne. [Reuters] | Pironkova stunned
Williams 2-6 6-0 9-7, condemning the former world number one to her earliest
grand slam exit since being bundled out of the 2001 French Open in the opening
round.
"I just couldn't pull my game together. I don't know what happened," a
dejected Williams said at a news conference.
"I was in good form but I just somehow fell off."
Ninth seed Elena Dementieva, a former French and U.S. Open finalist, also
suffered a surprise loss on Monday, losing 7-5 6-2 to Germany's Julia Schruff.
There were no major early casualties in the men's draw although Argentina's
Masters Cup champion David Nalbandian, one of just four men to beat Roger
Federer last year, scraped through 6-2 6-2 1-6 6-7 6-1 against Thai qualifier
Danai Udomchoke.
Nalbandian's Davis Cup team mate, eighth seed Gaston Gaudio, had a much
easier time against Razvan Sabau, strolling into the second round when the
injured Romanian pulled out in the second set.
World number one Lindsay Davenport also had a short first day, crushing
Australian wildcard Casey Dellacqua 6-2 6-1 in less than an hour, while Nadia
Petrova also made an impressive start by beating Sophie Ferguson 6-2 6-1.
"I feel like I'm ready for the challenges," said Davenport, Australian Open
in 2000 and runner-up to Serena Williams 12 months ago.
NO NERVES
Pironkova, playing in her first grand slam match, showed no sign of nerves or
being intimated by the power of Venus Williams.
The 18 year old frustrated Williams, tenaciously running down every shot the
American played.
After losing the first set, Pironkova breezed through the second to love in
26 minutes to force the match to a deciding third set.
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