Sabalenka eases through Brisbane opener, Kyrgios falls at first hurdle
- Sabalenka, who was beaten in straight sets by Kyrgios a week ago in a Dubai exhibition
World number one Aryna Sabalenka began her 2026 campaign with a thumping victory at the Brisbane International on Tuesday while her “Battle of the Sexes” opponent Nick Kyrgios fell short on his return to singles action after nearly a year out.
Sabalenka, who was beaten in straight sets by Kyrgios a week ago in a Dubai exhibition, resumed her preparations for the Australian Open by turning on the style to beat Cristina Bucsa 6-0 6-1 in 47 minutes to reach the third round.
“Definitely my serve worked really well,” she said after the quickest victory of her career.
“I did a couple of serve-and-volleys, which is like, ‘wow,’ so yeah, I’m super happy with the level. I’m happy to be back. I always enjoy playing in front of all you guys. That was a great performance from me.”
The defending Brisbane champion faces either Sorana Cirstea or Jelena Ostapenko next as she looks to build momentum for the January 18 to February 1 Grand Slam at Melbourne Park, where she will be hunting a third title.
The injury-plagued Kyrgios also had a short spell on court in his first singles match since March, the Australian losing 6-3 6-4 to American Aleksandar Kovacevic in 65 minutes.
The 30-year-old is hoping for a wildcard at Melbourne Park and will try to build his match fitness when he teams up with Thanasi Kokkinakis for a doubles round of 16 match on Wednesday.
The duo won their match against Matthew Ebden and Rajeev Ram on Sunday and will take on Sadio Doumbia and Fabien Reboul next.
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