Gasquet, Evans fall in Australian Open qualifying; Fonseca, Parks, Kudermetova to launch bids

Rain attempted to put a damper on the Happy Slam on Monday, before conditions cleared up for Australian Open qualifying to get underway.

U.S. competitors fared well overall on the opening day, while veterans Richard Gasquet and Dan Evans saw their main-draw aspirations dashed at the first hurdle.

Men’s qualifying seeds Chris Eubanks, Aleksandar Kovacevic, Mackenzie McDonald, Mitchell Krueger and Brandon Holt all moved through in straight sets. Eubanks, seeded fourth, won the final three games in his second set to close out Hugo Grenier, 7-6 (1), 7-5.

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Varvara Lepchenko and Emina Bektas advanced in women’s action, with the 21st-seeded Lepchenko securing a 6-1, 6-3 victory over Hanna Chang in an all-American showdown.

Gasquet was eliminated by Duje Ajdukovic, 7-6 (4), 6-3, with the Croatian ranked seven spots behind the former world No. 7 at No. 139. Evans, who won the longest match in US Open history over Karen Khachanov in his most recent major appearance, was sent packing by James Trotter of Japan following a 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 defeat.

On Tuesday, the likes of Joao Fonseca, Alycia Parks and Polina Kudermetova will launch their campaigns.

Fonseca, December’s Next Gen ATP Finals champion, opened his season by triumphing at the Canberra Challenger. Parks, the top seed in women’s qualifying here, is coming off a semifinal showing at the ASB Classic in Auckland.

After stringing seven wins together (five main draw) to reach the Brisbane International final, Kudermetova looks to continue her red-hot form against Switzerland’s Susan Bandecchi. Kudermetova, 21, vaulted 50 spots to a career-high No. 57 in Monday’s new WTA rankings.

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Sixteen-year-old Cruz Hewitt, son of International Tennis Hall of Fame inductee Lleyton Hewitt, makes his debut against Nikoloz Basilashvili. The Georgian has twice progressed to the third round of this tournament. Hewitt's preparation included a practice session with defending champion Jannik Sinner over the weekend.

Australians Bernard Tomic and Brisbane quarterfinalist Kimberly Birrell are also in action, along with top men’s seed Dominik Koepfer, rising Americans Robin Montgomery, Learner Tien and Ethan Quinn, and 2012 quarterfinalist Sara Errani.