Summary of Round 1: Our tennis players move on, Barty and Rublev unexpectedly finish

All of our representatives managed their 1st round perfectly and have a 100% record. While the progress of the women’s quartet was expected, the triumph of the debutant Machac is a pleasant surprise. Already in the opening round there were several surprises. Barty and Rublev bid farewell to the tournament. Defending gold medalist Andy Murray didn’t even enter.

Novak Djokovic is a clear candidate for gold. His performance against Dellien clearly proved that. The Serbian won both sets 6:2 and fulfilled his role as the favourite.

An unpleasant draw awaited the favourite Medvedev. He finally managed to cope with the unpredictable Bublik. The second player in the world defeated the Kazakh 6: 4 and 7: 6 and moved on.

Tsitsipas had unexpected problems. The finalist of Roland Garros 2021 had a hard time in his duel with Kohlschreiber. The favourite won the first set and it seemed that his advancement would be a mere formality.

But the German veteran fought back and took the match to a 3rd set. In the last set he even had the advantage of a break, but the favourite managed to turn the match around. Tsitsipas won 6::3, 3::6, 6::3 and his Olympic journey can continue.

The biggest surprise of the first round of the men’s singles was Kei Nishikori. The home player clashed with Rublev. The Japanese defends his bronze from Rio 2016 and confirms his success at the Olympic Games in Tokyo. The Japanese showed an excellent performance that Rublev was not entitled to. Nishikori won 6::3, 6::4 and came out a big favourite.

Andy Murray should have been the defending Olympic gold medalist. He was supposed to face Auger-Alliasi in the first round. However, due to health problems he decided to withdraw from the tournament. He was supposed to play in the doubles.

Tomas Machac finished the program of the 1st round. His Olympic debut was successful. He defeated Sousa 6::7, 6::4, 6::4 and scored an extremely valuable victory. He will play Schwartzman in the second round.

The biggest shock of the 1st round in the women’s section was Sorribes-Torm against Barty. The world number one had recently dominated Wimbledon and was one of the biggest aspirants for gold.

However, the Australian had already failed in the 1st round. She committed 55 unforced errors and was no match for the troublesome Spaniard. Sorribes-Torm beat her 6: 4, 6: 3 and scored the biggest victory of her career.

On the other hand, the other women’s favourites fared well. Sabalenka, Osaka, Muguruza and Swiatek easily managed their matches and advanced to the second round.

Our tennis players also managed to play the role of favourites. Barbora Krejcikova was the easiest to advance to the top 32. The native of Ivancice was leading 5:2 when Dijas gave up and had to abandon the match. Krejcikova will face Fernandez in the battle for the eighth round.

Karolina Pliskova is still performing well. The Czech served well against Cornetova and gave her opponent no chance. The Czech number one outplayed the Frenchwoman 6: 1, 6: 3 and fulfilled the role of the favourite. In the second round she will face Suarez-Navarro.

Petra Kvitova also successfully entered the tournament. The defending bronze medalist defeated Paolini 6: 4, 6: 3 and advanced relatively easily. Her next opponent will be Van Uytvanck.

Markéta Vondroušová is the most hopeful to advance. Her opponent was Bertens, former 4th player in the world. The Dutchwoman is not doing well at all at the end of her career, yet she made it very difficult for her opponent.

Vondrousova won the first set, but the Dutchwoman fought back and the drama was taken care of. However, the Czech favourite managed to win the match. Vondroušová won 6::4, 3::6, 6::4 and made a successful Olympic debut. She will play Buzarnescu in her next match.

Results of our representatives:

Machac vs. Sousa – 6::7, 6::4, 6::4
Krejcikova vs. Dijas – 5::2 – draw
Pliskova vs. Cornetova – 6::1, 6::3
Kvitova vs. Paolini – 6::4, 6::3
Vondrousova vs. Bertens – 6::4, 3::6, 6::4

Source: Livesport