LONDON, June 21, 2017
Aussies Thanasi Kokkinakis and Jordan Thompson celebrated their biggest wins of their career at the Aegon Championships on Tuesday.
Thompson shocked World No. 1 and Andy Murray, knocking out the five-time champion 7-6, 6-2. The 23-year-old from Sydney fired 12 aces, saved all three break points he face, converting two of his own to secure victory in one hour and 43 minutes.
“I played really well. Served great. Got a lot of free points. Gave myself every opportunity in the rallies and didn’t make too many errors. Yeah, it was a good day at the office,” told Thompson, who benefitted from Brit Aljaz Bedene’s withdrawal and entered the main draw as lucky loser.
“He played better than me,” Murray said. “The first set there was not much in it. I made some mistakes in the middle part of the tie-break, which gifted it to him a little bit… That wasn’t a great period of the match for me there… I didn’t create loads of chances, really. I didn’t return particularly well. He served big. He served well.”
A couple of big wins at @QueensTennis for our young Aussie boys. Well done @jordanthommmo2 & @TKokkinakis Keep it rolling fellas! 🇦🇺🎾
— Lleyton Hewitt (@lleytonhewitt) 20. Juni 2017
Murray’s defeat was by no means the only upset in the first round at The Queen’s Club as last year’s runner-up Milos Raonic of Canada and French Open finalist Stan Wawrinka from Switzerland also tumbled out.
Raonic lost to Thanasi Kokkinakis, who sealed his first Top 10 victory in two tie-breaks. The #NextGen ATP star from Adelaide won 78 per cent of his first service points to prevail after two hours and one minute.
“It’s huge. Best win of my career, and to do it so soon after coming back on [after] such a long layoff is a huge confidence booster for me. My serve helped me in it, and then I won the big points when it mattered,” told Kokkinakis, who had to miss more than four months of the season because of an abdominal strain.
Wawrinka fell to Stuttgart runner-up Feliciano López. The 35-year-old from Spain sent down 16 aces to celebrate a 7-6, 7-5 win in one hour and 30 minutes.
The day two @rado highlights are here. @jordanthommmo2, @TKokkinakis, @feliciano_lopez all upset the tournament’s top seeds. pic.twitter.com/OdOEmfeD6L
— Aegon Championships (@QueensTennis) 20. Juni 2017
