World News – AU – Chris O’Connell cleaned boats three years ago Now he’s in the second round of the Australian Open

Eddie McGuire has resigned as President of Collingwood following a report of systemic racism at the club

Sydney sider Chris O’Connell was rewarded for his persistence after securing a second-round spot at the Australian Open with an angry win

O’Connell, a wild card in the men’s draw, won his match in the first round against the 37th Jan-Lennard Struff with 7-6 (7/2), 7-6 (7/5) and 6-1 on Court Seven in Melbourne Park in only the third major that he has contested

As recently as three years ago, O’Connell was cleaning boats at a marina on Sydney’s northern beaches to make a living after taking time off from his career due to frustration with a persistent knee injury

He finally played again in the second half of 2018, but it wasn’t until the following year that he made an impression on the ATP rankings after falling into the top 1000

O’Connell finished the 2019 season 119th in the world before participating in the Australian Open last year, where he left the tournament in the first round

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A year later, O’Connell, now 121 in the ATP rankings, scored only his second win in a major when he defeated the experienced Struff

The first two sets were tight, but O’Connell, 26, beat his dominance in the third home and won in just over two hours in front of a small crowd in the outside court

The result means that O’Connell had his best performance with a major after reaching the second round of the US Open last year

“It just took me a long time to figure out how to get these victories, to feel safe and comfortable out there, I still have something to learn”

“I come from the northern part of the northern beaches. It was a bit tough there for a little bit. But I managed to work out a little bit

Among other Australian results on day two, wildcards Astra Sharma, Maddison Inglis and Arina Rodionova went under

in the opening round of the women’s draw

Sharma dominated Japan’s Hibino at the start of their competition and took a double break on the way to winning the first set in 35 minutes

Hibino claimed the second set to force a crucial third in what turned out to be an arm wrestling

Sharma was broken in the opening game, losing 2-0 before dropping out three games in a row to move the set back to serve

The decisive moment came in the 11th Game when the 76th Hibino interrupted the Australian’s serve to create a 6-5 lead before finishing the game in the following game

Inglis, 133 in the WTA rankings, showed no signs of being overwhelmed when she faced Kenin in her first appearance at the Australian Open since 2016 in the Rod Laver Arena

She broke Kenin’s serve twice during the competition and fought to the end This became evident when she saved two match points

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Christopher O’Connell