Top seed Kerber battles into Open second round

AFP: World number one Angelique Kerber battled past Lesia Tsurenko in a stuttering start to her first Grand Slam title defence at the Australian Open Monday.

The top seed ultimately proved too much for the Ukrainian, winning 6-2, 5-7, 6-2 on Rod Laver Arena and but the German’s laboured victory was far from impressive.

Kerber, 28, stunned Serena Williams in the final last year and went on to win the US Open, dethroning the American powerhouse as the world’s top ranked player.

She is not only defending a major title for the first time but also playing her maiden Grand Slam as top seed, admitting ahead of the tournament that she was carrying the burden of expectation. She seemed to be struggling under that pressure early in the game, taking time to get into her groove. Once she did, there was no stopping her until Tsurenko came back to life late in the second set.  

“The first round is always tough. I’m just trying to enjoy it and I’m so so happy to be in the second round,” Kerber said.