Prajnesh Gunneswaran got a taste of high-level tennis in his first-round exit from the US Open, losing to World No. 5 Daniil Medvedev in straight sets, here on Monday.
The gulf between Prajnesh and top-10 players was apparent as he lost 6-4, 6-1, 6-2 to the Russian, who had recently beaten Novak Djokovic.
The Indian left-hander began aggressively but could not maintain the intensity after losing the well-fought first set at Louis Armstrong Stadium.
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The pressure induced unending unforced errors from Prajnesh, who was trying too hard.
He had the heart to fight but lacked the experience of playing at this level against the best in the business.
Prajnesh’s body language was aggressive while Medvedev largely remained calm; the Russian served big and his solid returns in long rallies helped him take those extra points.
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“I can't say I'm feeling amazing about my game but to win by that score in the first round is great,” Medvedev said. “I hope I can continue to play well.”
Kerber out
In an early upset on the opening day, the 2016 women’s champion Angelique Kerber was bundled out by Kristina Mladenovic 7-5, 0-6, 6-4.
Reigning French Open women’s champion Ashleigh Barty shook off a horrid first set to defeat Kazakhstan’s Zarina Diyas, third seed Karolina Pliskova struggled into the second round while the 2014 men’s runner-up Kei Nishikori of Japan needed only 47 minutes to advance.