Update 4:30 pm. Australian wildcard James Duckworth has kicked off his ATP career in fairytale fashion, upsetting experienced Frenchman Nicolas Mahut in straight sets at Pat Rafter Arena in his first ever ATP match.
Duckworth, who turns 20 later this month—coincidentally on the same day as Mahut exactly 10 years later—refused to be overawed by the Frenchman, currently ranked almost 200 spots ahead, coming back from a 4-1 deficit in the first set to clinch the match, 6-4 6-4.
Winning his debut ATP match on centre court in front of a roaring home crowd and cheered on by Rafter himself was a dream come true for the talented Sydney teenager, who could barely control his smile in the post-match press conference.
“I knew he was a good player and if I was to win I had to play well and I was able to,” Duckworth said.
“It was great when the chants, ‘Aussie Aussie Aussie’, started going and then when I served for the match and everyone started clapping, it was a great feeling. It’s something I’ve dreamt about, playing on stadiums like this, and hopefully I can do it for a number of years.”
The signs were ominous early, aced on the first point and a tentative service game leaving Duckworth 2-0 down after just five minutes of play. Mahut mixed his speed on serve and worked to the corners, leaving the Australian looking out of his depth at 4-1 down.
But Duckworth started loosening his shoulders as his classically Australian rhythmic service action saw him gain in confidence before two double faults off the Mahut racquet gifted the Australian a break back.
Confidently charging the net and shifting the ball around the court, Duckworth was hitting all the marks, breaking Mahut for a 5-4 lead and a chance to serve for the first set. With the crowd hanging on every shot, the youngster showed composure beyond his years, closing out the set with an ace.
“At the start I got down 3-0 in about 10 seconds. I was a bit nervous; it was a bit stage. I haven’t played on a stadium like that before, but I gathered myself and I was able to stay pretty composed,” he said.
The second set started evenly, but it was Duckworth again who had chances on his opponent’s serve, deep ground strokes gifting the local an easy smash to break the Mahut serve for a 4-3 lead.
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Despite nerves setting in as Mahut broke straight back, Duckworth kept his cool and took advantage of the frustrated Frenchman to take a 5-4 lead and serve the set out to love, ending the match with a classic serve out wide and crosscourt forehand.
Duckworth said training in composure and fitness with the AIS coaches as well as a week in Noosa with Queensland legend Pat Rafter has been the key to his recent jump in form.
“At times I’ve lost my composure and that’s cost me matches and it’s something I’ve been working on the last six months to a year and I think it’s really improved,” he said.
“I had pretty good preparation before this. I did quite a few tough weeks of training and I got myself in the best possible shape I could and I guess it showed.”
In a promising age group for Australian men’s tennis, Duckworth said roommate Ben Mitchell as well as Matt Ebden and Marinko Matosevic are all chances of joining him in the second round of the tournament, insisting they’re spurred on rather than overshadowed by fellow 19-year-old Bernard Tomic.
“He’s kind of kicked on a bit earlier than a few of us, but it’s something to I guess work towards. He’s a great player and a lot of us are working hard each day to get to where he is,” Duckworth said.
Duckworth waits in the second round for the winner of the match between second seed Gilles Simon and American talent Ryan Sweeting, but regardless of the result the Australian is content to settle on another centre court experience, dropping a wry hint to tournament organisers.
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“Gilles is obviously the favourite. He’ll be a tough player and Ryan’s playing well—he won a tour event last year on the clay over in America—so either one will be tough,” he said.
“Hopefully I get Pat Rafter Arena again; it was great out there.”
The Australian women got off to a slower start today, with wildcard Casey Dellacqua going down comfortably to Serbian Bojana Jovanovski, 6-4 6-2.
The 26-year-old Australian showed hopeful form early going up a break in the first set, but was outdone by the strong young Serbian, who celebrated her twentieth birthday yesterday.