Djokovic v Prizmic, Seidel v Sabalenka and more: Australian Open 2024 day one – live | Australian Open 2024

Former teenage prodigy Amanda Anisimova, who reached the semi-finals of the 2019 French Open aged 17, took a break from tennis in April last year in order to address her ailing mental health. Nine months later, Anisimova returned to grand slam competition with a win, defeating 13th seed Liudmila Samsonova 6-3 6-4. Here she is after her big win:

Q. Do you have a new outlook on your tennis after having a break last year?

AMANDA ANISIMOVA: “In some ways I do. But the most important thing is that I feel a lot more refreshed. I’m enjoying practicing. I’m enjoying every second that I’m out there. Even when I was down today, I was still just enjoying the challenge. Yeah, I’m just happy with how I feel coming back. I feel like I was very burned out while I was playing, and that really wasn’t a nice feeling. Being able to just reset is really nice.”

WOW! Prizmic nets the first serve of his final set point but makes the second and, after an epic, tension-building, rally Djokovic misses! And an 18 year old draws level with the world No. 1!

Djokovic has won his last 16 first-round matches at Australian Open and dropped only one set in the process (v Jan Lennard Struff, 2020). He has just dropped his second.

Prizmic takes the first point but can’t do anything with Djokovic’s big second serve. Prizmi goes two-one up winning a fizzing rally, Djokovic draws level. Prizmic goes 3-2 up but then 4-2 after a lucky net cord, and 5-2 after Djokovic nets his backhand. 6-2 as Djokovic goes long…. Djokovic saves the first of four set points, and a second…and a third….

Ace, a love hold, and we have a tie-break!

The second set will go to at least a tie-break as Prizmic holds to love!

“Prizmic is going for the lines, playing carefree tennis” says Pat Cash. Carefree is the word. Carefree cock of the walk, 18-year old exuberance. But he can’t take the set. Djokovic wants this game, and though he hits long at the end of a long rally at 40-15, Prizmic then nets.

Night falling in Melbourne as Djokovic hits wide on the backhand. Then an ace takes Prizmic to 40-0, before he makes and error and hits long. But Djokovic returns long and that’s the game, if he can just break Djokovic in the next, Prizmic has taken a set off the World Number one.

The Djokovic machine holds to love to suitably dampen expectation.

Tenacious, free, frisky, tennis from Prizmic who seems to have endless bounce in his trainers. Wins a long cross court rally as Djokovic hits long, showing signs of irritation. Snatches things with an ace. Fabulous hold.

Djokovic hits the net with his forehand, but Prizmic does the same with his double-handed backhand. Prizmic is sweaty, Djokovic box fresh. The balls are settling into sogginess again, new ones due in three games time. Djokovic misses a forehand on game point, looks irritated, but takes the game.

A stern, elegant looking member of Djokovic’s entourage, conveys a message. Whatever it was, it works, Djokovic breaks back immediately, helped by a couple of unforced errors. Djokovic blows his nose.

Prizmic suddenly alight! A leaping overhead smash into the corner to go 15-0 up on the Djokovic serve, finished by a cross court scorcher to take the game. Wow! He raises his finger to acknowledge the crowd and clenches his fist in youthful headiness.

Prizmic starts by getting the better of a long rally after a wild forehand from Djokovic. Storms the game with some powerful whipping shots, holding to love. This boy can play.

Djokovic, hewn of granite, holds his serve to 15. Prizmic, with nascent moustache, questions the smiling umpire about something, but all is resolved.

Important hold in the first game of the second set for Prizmic, strapped left thigh matching strapped right wrist. Enthusiastic applause from his team and the crowd as he recovers from a double fault to win with a zipping forehand.

The new ball does its job immediately as Prizmic returns the first serve long. Djokovic has two set points, picks up the first and eats it with an ace. First set done and dusted in less than 45 minutes, not all one way though.

Djokovic breaks Prizmic to love, two tight points followed a couple of pressure-honed errors by Prizmic. New balls now, and the talk around the coaches in Melbourne is that this year’s balls get very slow and soggy midway through their life on court (normally nine games, but seven for the first lot because of the warm-up). Then the new ones ping like bullets.

The Djokovic machine cranks up a notch. Service game to love.

Not so easy! The crowd buzz as the young pretender leads Djokovic a merry dance through this game, sending him this way and that. Service held, Prizmic calls for the physio, though not for his heavily strapped right wrist. He lies down on a towel to have his upper thighs massaged. Feels slightly intrusive to have overhead cameras watching this massage but maybe that’s just me.

Glorious! After a long rally at 15-0, Prizmic kisses a cross-court drop shot to win the point. But Djokovic, whose blue trainers are embroidered with 24 to represent his 24 major titles – 25 would take him past Margaret Court – powers onwards.

Prizmic eats a half-hearted Djokovic smash to go 15-0 up and then hits a super backhand straight down the line to outfox his opponent. A delicate flutter of a drop shop is followed up by a cross-court winning waft. At 40-0 up a double fault gives Djokovic a way back, but Prizmic holds on to take the game . Very nicely done!

Prizmic, dressed very much like a young Ronaldo, shifts from foot to foot waiting to receive the Djokovic serve, but it’s a fairly easy win to fifteen for the defending champion.

The first match of the first night session of the Australian Open. From the crowd, Djokovic’s coach Ivanisevic watches intently. Djokovic should eat 18-year-old Prizmic alive – famous last words – but Prizmic, I am reliably told, will be a star. He came through the qualifying event dropping just one set. Prizmic loses the first two points, but holds onto two break points before hitting into the net and Djokovic breaks. But it wasn’t a breeze.

The world’s greatest male tennis player has the ball in his hand as he and Prizmic warm up on the Rod Laver arena. Djokovic is in all royal blue, Prizmic in short shorts, white T-shirt and backwards baseball cap.

A bad day for the British number two Jodie Burrage, who danced through the first set against Tamara Korpatsch, but then completely lost her mojo, defeated 2-6 6-3 6-0.

“A bit of a tough one today. Still pretty raw, to be honest, so still a lot of emotions there. It was just a tough end to a match really.

“I found it tough to serve in that wind and just my game in general. I tried to adjust as much as possible, but yeah, when you hit a bigger ball I guess and don’t grind it out, when it gets windy, it’s not as easy to play, but that’s just what I need to learn to do. I need to learn to have a bit of a plan B because there was no plan B there today.”

In the last ten minutes, Number five seed Andrey Rubelev has just thrown himself on the ground and roared in triumph, shaking his mane of red hair, after struggling through a five-set thriller against Thiago Seyboth Wild: 7-5, 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 7-6(6) .

Good morning! It’s may be black outside here in the UK but across the oceans, summer is beaming. The first day of the first Grand Slam of the year is underway in Melbourne, all squeaky trainers, blue courts and Novak Djokovic hungrily licking his lips for his eleventh Australian Open title.

His old foe Rafa Nadal isn’t here, withdrawing with a muscle tear in his hip, but Carlos Alcaraz, Danniil Medvedev and Jannik Sinner prowl, desperately-looking for signs of ageing in the ageless one. In the women’s draw, Aryna Sabalenka defends her title after winning her first career major here last year. No. 1 seed Iga Swiatek is the favourite for the crown while there is lots of interest in comeback queens Naomi Osaka, Angelique Kerber and Britain’s own Emma Raducanu.