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Aleksandar Vukic, a lucky loser in the Toronto main draw, upset 14th seed Borna Coric to join fellow Aussies Alex de Minaur and Thanasi Kokkinakis in the second round.
Toronto, Canada, 8 August 2023 | Matt Trollope
Toronto, Canada
Aleksandar Vukic has beaten the highest-ranked opponent of his career after upsetting Borna Coric in the first round of the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Toronto.
Vukic outplayed the world No.15 6-2 6-3 for his first ever win over a top-20 opponent.
His previous best win by ranking came against world No.31 Yoshihito Nishioka, which he achieved on route to his first ATP final in Atlanta two weeks ago.
The win over Coric continues a rich vein of form for the 27-year-old Aussie, who has won six of his past nine hard-court matches and boosted his ranking to a career-high No.62.
5 – With victory over Borna Coric, Atlanta finalist Aleksandar Vukic is only the fifth lucky loser to defeat an opponent in the ATP’s top 20 at the Canadian Open, since the ATP rankings were introduced in 1973. #NBO23 | @NBOtoronto @atptour @ATPMediaInfo pic.twitter.com/q6TJTk9uLW
— OptaAce (@OptaAce) August 8, 2023
Vukic lost in the final round of qualifying in Toronto, but earned a place in the main draw as a lucky loser after Grigor Dimitrov withdrew. He next faces American Sebastian Korda for a place in the last 16.
Also advancing on Tuesday was Alex de Minaur, who beat 11th seed Cameron Norrie 7-5 6-4.
> Watch the Aussies in Toronto on beIN Sports or TennisTV
It might appear an upset on paper, but this was a match between top-20 players; De Minaur is the highest-ranked unseeded player in the Toronto draw.
Since mid June, De Minaur has won 11 of his past 15 matches and reached two ATP finals, including last week in Los Cabos.
He next faces the winner of the match between Washington DC champion Dan Evans and Canadian wildcard Gabriel Diallo.
De Minaur and Vukic join Thanasi Kokkinakis in the second round. Another Aussie, Max Purcell, will attempt to join them when he takes on 10th seed Felix Auger-Aliassime under lights on Centre Court shortly.
Aussies in action – Toronto
RESULTS
Men’s singles, first round
Alex de Minaur (AUS) d [11] Cameron Norrie (GBR) 7-5 6-4
[LL] Aleksandar Vukic (AUS) d [14] Borna Coric (CRO) 6-2 6-3
COMING UP
Men’s singles, first round
[Q] Max Purcell (AUS) v [10] Felix Auger-Aliassime (CAN)
Men’s singles, second round
[Q] Thanasi Kokkinakis (AUS) d [16] Lorenzo Musetti (ITA)
[LL] Aleksandar Vukic (AUS) v Sebastian Korda (USA)
Alex de Minaur (AUS) v TBC
Men’s doubles, first round
John Peers (AUS)/Marcelo Melo (BRA) v Sander Gille (BEL)/Joran Vliegen (BEL)
Men’s doubles second round
Max Purcell (AUS)/Andrey Rublev v Nathaniel Lammons (USA)/Jackson Withrow (USA)
[4] Matt Ebden (AUS)/Rohan Bopanna (IND) v Jamie Murray (GBR)/Michael Venus (NZL)
Montreal, Canada
Over in Montreal, Kimberly Birrell found former world No.1 Caroline Wozniacki too tough on Tuesday.
Wozniacki, in the first match of her comeback after retiring at Australian Open 2020, beat the Australian qualifier 6-2 6-2.
Birrell has won two matches to take her place in the main draw, but could not match the relentless consistency of Wozniacki, who sets up a second-round meeting with Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova.
Birrell’s countrywomen Storm Hunter and Ellen Perez will continue flying the Australian flag in the doubles draw.
Aussies in action – Montreal
RESULTS
Women’s singles, first round
[WC] Caroline Wozniacki (DEN) d [Q] Kimberly Birrell (AUS) 6-2 6-2
COMING UP
Women’s doubles, first round
[2] Storm Hunter (AUS)/Elise Mertens (BEL) v bye
[4] Ellen Perez (AUS)/Nicole Melichar-Martinez (USA) v bye
Women’s doubles, second round
[2] Storm Hunter (AUS)/Elise Mertens (BEL) v Marta Kostyuk (UKR)/Zhang Shuai (CHN)
Book online, play today: Visit play.tennis.com.au to get out on court and have some fun!
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