Australian Open: Dennis Novak lost to Hubert Hurkacz despite 2-0 set lead
Dennis Novak was eliminated in the first round of the Australian Open despite a particularly impressive performance at the start. The Austrian lost to Hubert Hurkacz with 7: 6 (4), 6: 1, 2: 6, 3: 6 and 4: 6. ( You can read about the game in our live ticker ).
by Nikolaus Fink
last edit: Jan 21, 2020, 03:58 am
After the sovereign qualification for the main competition, Dennis Novak expected a completely different caliber in the main competition of the Australian Open: With the Pole Hubert Hurkacz, the Austrian met the 31st player, who had also defeated Novak's best friend Dominic Thiem at the ATP Cup ,
But Novak froze against the 22-year-old anything but in awe: Although the world ranking 99 at 5: 5 a break opportunity was not used, but Novak struck in the tie-break and secured passage number one.
Those who had expected a furious comeback by Poland were initially instructed otherwise. Novak got better and better, managed the first break to 2: 0 and shortly after another to 5: 1. After around 80 minutes of play, the 26-year-old was already 7: 6 (4) and 6: 1 in the front.
Hurkacz fights back
Hurkacz, of course, did not want to be defeated without a fight: The world ranking 31. Novak took the serve to 2-0 in the third set and then played that lead home safely. Thanks to another break, the Pole was able to present his own service in the fourth round.
Here, too, Hurkacz made the first break - this time for 3-1. Novak was unable to build on its performance from the first two rounds and now made one or two mistakes too much. Although the Austrian still found three options for the rebreak, he missed them and so Hurkacz was able to secure the set with 6: 3.
Novak started with a serve in the fifth section, but had to hand it over in the third game. The 26-year-old was able to equalize to 4: 4, but had to accept another break after two balls. After warding off a breakball, Hurkacz was finally able to serve and fix the move into the second round.
For Novak, the only consolation is that they have delivered outstanding performance over long distances. However, the second first round end remains in the same number of main field appearances at the Australian Open ( you can read about the game in our live ticker ).
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