TENNIS NEWS - Ekaterina Makarova kept cool in the fierce Australian heat to upset the French Open champion and world No 7 Jelena Ostapenko 7-6(3) 6-1 in the opening round of the Sydney International on Sunday.
Makarova, who reached the Australian Open semifinals after stunning Serena Williams three years ago, rode an early break for a 5-3 lead and, even though her Latvian opponent got back to 5-5, raced away with the first set tiebreak.
Third seed Ostapenko, who also lost her opening match in Shenzhen last week, put up a fierce fight at the start of the second set but faded after losing her first service game and Makarova moved on to face Barbora Strycova or Daria Kasatkina.
"It was first match of the season so of course I was nervous at the beginning," said Makarova.
"But I tried to stay solid, to stay with my aggressive game, and it worked in the important moments."
