Defending champions Roger Federer and Amelie Mauresmo overcame early jitters to negotiate the first round of the Australian Open on Monday on a day overshadowed by brawling Serbian and Croatian fans.
Unseeded seven-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams breezed through her match against Italian 27th seed Mara Santangelo 6-2, 6-1, dispelling doubts about her fitness after an injury plagued 2006.
But fourth seed Ivan Ljubicic crashed out, unable to get to grips with American Mardy Fish, losing 4-6, 7-6 (7/2), 6-4, 6-4 to become the highest profile casualty on day one.
Russia’s Marat Safin, the 2005 champion and twice runner-up, teetered on the edge of elimination before winning a five-set thriller against German Benjamin Becker 5-7, 7-6 (7/2), 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 in 3hr 26min.
While the tennis went mostly to form, age-old ethnic rivalries between Serbian and Croat fans boiled over.
Wearing the national colours of the bitter Balkan rivals, the two sides clashed after taunting and hurling insults at each other.
Dozens of police were called in and ejected around 150 of them after confiscating their tickets.
”They were mostly Serbians ejected as they were upsetting the Croatians,” Victoria Police spokesperson Katherine Jess said.
Tennis Australia chief executive Steve Wood said there were no injuries or arrests and praised security staff for acting swiftly to end the trouble.
Unaware of the commotion, the Fed Express, bidding for his third Australian Open title and 10th Grand Slam, stuttered through his first set against German Bjorn Phau before finding his groove to post a 7-5, 6-0, 6-4 win.
It sets up a second clash with veteran Swede Jonas Bjorkman.
Under cloudy skies and with a smoke haze from bushfires in the air, the Swiss world number one admitted he had to battle hard before getting the upper hand.
”I’m happy to be through because it looked like I was definitely going to head for a first-set loss,” he said.
”But I came through, that’s the most important thing.”
Andy Roddick, who beat Federer in the exhibition Kooyong Classic final on Saturday, was also given a fright, losing the first set after a mammoth tiebreak to French wildcard Jo-Wilfried Tsonga before going 2-5 down in the second.
The American pulled himself together and rallied to a 6-7 (18/20), 7-6 (7/2) 6-3, 6-3 victory and will now play another Frenchman, Marc Gicquel.
Others through included ninth seed Mario Ancic of Croatia, the evergreen Dominik Hrbaty of Slovakia, seeded 22, and former French Open champion Juan Carlos Ferrero, seeded 24.
Last year’s finalist Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus scratched his way to a 6-4, 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 win over Germany’s Rainer Schuettler, and said it was unsettling being back at the scene of his career tennis highlight.
”It’s not like a normal tournament for me, and that’s all. It’s like a different tournament and I’m not used to it. I have to just find my way,” he said.
Mauresmo, the second seed behind Maria Sharapova, fought past Shenay Perry 6-3, 6-4.
The Frenchwoman, who also won Wimbledon last year for Grand Slam success after a decade of frustration, proved too powerful for the American, but it was a decent workout ahead of her next match against Olga Poutchkova of Russia.
”[It’s] not yet quite the feeling that I had at the end of the tournament last year but the first match is never easy,” said the Geneva-based 27-year-old, who has shaken off her tag as a choker.
Williams, who won the title here in 2003 and 2005, said she was feeling better than she had in a long time and believed she could win a third Australian crown.
”I’m excited to be back out here and I came out and finally did what I’m supposed to do to a certain level,” she said.
Other women through included Russian seventh seed Elena Dementieva, Serbian 11th seed Jelena Jankovic and Czech Republic 10th seed Nicole Vaidisova. — AFP
