MELBOURNE, January 12, 2017
It was a more enjoyable day at the 2017 Priceline Pharmacy Kooyong Classic for Australian teenager Destanee Aiava improves, who played much better in her second match of the tournament.
The 19-year-old played some very powerful shots in her 4-6 5-7 defeat to China’s Wang Qiang, proving that her first outing against Sorana Cirstea was severely affect by first-day nerves.
“I was playing a bit better than, whatever day I played, I forgot… Tuesday,” Aiava laughed after the match.
“It doesn’t really matter about the result, I’m just using this as preparation for the Aus Open.
“Yeah I was feeling much better on the court and was a bit more confident today, but it wasn’t my day.”
Prior to that match it was Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga who provided an entertaining spectacle for the Kooyong crowd against Borna Coric on another hot and sunny day in Melbourne.
As usual the current world number 12 brought power and charm to the court in his 6-3 7-6 win over the young Croatian who has already been ranked inside the top 50 as a teenager in 2015.
“Yeah that’s what I needed,” Tsonga told reporters after the match.
“I played indoors last week and had three matches so it was good to play a match this week also to get ready for Monday or Tuesday.
“It’s quite similar conditions to the Melbourne Park, probably it’s going to be hot and for sure different than Doha but we get used to it slowly and anyway it’s good to be here and playing on court.”
In other results tall Russian Karen Khachanov used his strong serving game to defeat Yoshihito Nishioka 6-4 2-6 (10-3) while Australian teenager Marc Polmans managed to edge Mikhail Youzhny in a super tiebreak.
RESULTS, 12 January
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA) def Bora Coric (CRO)
6-3 7-6
Destanee Aiava (AUS) def by Wang Qiang (CHN)
4-6 5-7
Yoshihito Nishioka (JPN) def by Karen Khachanov (RUS)
4-6 6-2 3-10
Marc Polmans (AUS) def Mikhail Touzhny (RUS)
2-6 6-2 11-9
Friday brings the 2017 Priceline Pharmacy Kooyong Classic to a close with the men’s final between David Goffin and Ivo Karlovic, as well as the women’s title mach for the championship draws between Yanina Wickmayer and Sorana Cirstea. The 3rd/4th playoff between Australian Bernard Tomic and Gilles Simon will open the day.
