Angelique Kerber suffered a bitter defeat on her eagerly awaited Grand Slam return. The former world number one from Kiel lost to the American Danielle Collins 2:6, 6:3, 1:6 in her first round game at the Australian Open and was far from her former performance.
Collins, in the final of the first Grand Slam tournament of the tennis season in 2022, converted her second match point after 1:52 hours. Kerber only returned to the tennis tour at the United Cup around the turn of the year after an 18-month baby break.
Previously, she had not played a match since Wimbledon 2022 and gave birth to her daughter Liana in February 2023. Their expectations were correspondingly low before their first appearances.
“I know I have to be patient”
“It wasn’t my best tennis, I noticed that too. Still, I tried everything. I know I have to be patient”Kerber said after the 2:6, 6:3, 1:6 against the American Collins on Tuesday (January 16, 2024): “I need time. It’s a challenge, but I’m pursuing it.”
For the 2016 tournament winner, it was the third first round exit in a row in Melbourne; she did not compete in 2023 due to the impending birth of her daughter. “I know it’s my turn. But I need matches, tournaments and one or two wins that keep my self-confidence high.”
Barbara Rittner sees a break-in
National coach Barbara Rittner spoke of one “mental and physical breakdown” in the third sentence: “Angie was then crushed.” Above all, the former world number one was troubled by the weak rate on her second serve, which was defeated by her opponents in the end “was played against the wall”as Rittner said, who, as an observer on site, also noticed physical deficits: “She can’t be back to where she used to be in terms of her fitness level.”
Before her performance on the Yarra River, Kerber had one “cold start” After her comeback at the United Cup at the beginning of the year with four individual defeats out of five games, the 35-year-old didn’t want to put too much pressure on herself – and with Collins she had a big hit.
Disputes with the draw
With the powerful game of the world number 62. Kerber had problems at first, early on she kept shaking her head in perplexity. In the second set she improved significantly and sometimes pushed herself.
In 2019, Kerber had already been clearly defeated by the American at the first major tournament of the year. On Tuesday, Collins turned things up decisively at the beginning of the third set, and Kerber had nothing left to oppose her. Collins used her second match point to win. “I would have liked an easier draw, but nothing is easy for me. It’s always been that way,” Kerber said.