Australian Open 2022 day two: Broady v Kyrgios, Murray wins opener – live!

Broady is expecting one more shot at the Kyrgios serve, but his opponent has other ideas, stepping on the gas to set up two break and match points – and he takes the first with a whipped, cross-court backhand return. Job done!

Third set: Broady 4-6, 4-6, *3-5 Kyrgios (denotes next server) Broady is able to get one serve back over the net, and that is returned with interest by Kyrgios – now one game away from victory.

Third set: Broady 4-6, 4-6, 3-4* Kyrgios (denotes next server) There have been positives for Liam Broady – he holds to love here, and his beard-gold-chain-retro-kit combo is among the strongest we’ll see all fortnight. But the fact remains that he’s running out of time to finally break the Kyrgios serve.

Third set: Broady 4-6, 4-6, *2-4 Kyrgios (denotes next server) A pair of holds exchanged, and a couple of trick shots from Kyrgios that don’t quite come off. Kyrgios’ serve wobbled slightly at the start of this set but he’s back in the groove now, firing down aces to move two games from victory.

Aryna Sabalenka is also closing in on the second round – she’s now 5-1 up in the decider against Storm Sanders on Rod Laver Arena.

Third set: Broady 4-6, 4-6, 1-2* Kyrgios (denotes next server) Broady held off Kyrgios on serve and then forced a break point – but he’s under more pressure here at deuce. He nets, and it’s break point Kyrgios – and after a brutal rally, Kyrgios gets a lucky bounce off the net cord. He offers up a hand in apology, but the end result is that he’s four holds away from victory now.

Sabalenka appears to have got herself out of trouble against Storm Sanders – a well-timed break in the second helped her level, and she’s now a break up in the decider.

Elsewhere, Alex De Minaur has raced to take the third set from Lorenzo Musetti, winning it 6-0. He leads 2-1, while fellow Aussie Alex Popyrin is 2-1 down to Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech.

Third set: Broady 4-6, 4-6, *1-1 Kyrgios (denotes next server) An ill-advised through-the-legs effort from Kyrgios is dispatched by Broady, who then finds a winning return to get to deuce. Signs that Kyrgios has taken his eye off the ball, and it’s advantage Broady as he chases down a fortunate net-cord bounce. Kyrgios lets out a roar as Broady’s return goes long – and he backs that up with a couple more big serves to escape.

So, what’s happened in the men’s draw overnight/earlier today? Well, Daniil Medvedev saw off Henri Laaksonen and awaits the winner of this match. His compatriot, Andrey Rublev also eased through against Gianluca Mager. Jannik Sinner beat lucky loser João Sousa in straight sets while Felix Auger-Aliassime battled back from two sets down to beat Finland’s Emil Ruusuvuori.

Marin Cilic, Grigor Dimitrov and Roberto Bautista Agut are all through, but John Isner lost in five sets to Maxime Cressy and Ugo Humbert was beaten by Richard Gasquet. Dan Evans eased past David Goffin, and Andy Murray didn’t do badly either.

Third set: Broady 4-6, 4-6, 1-0* Kyrgios (denotes next server) In both of the first two sets, Kyrgios broke at the first opportunity and served out the set. Can Broady stop him this time? He’s quickly 0-30 down but holds his composure and turns the game around, finishing off with a cross-court winner.

Second set: Broady 4-6, *4-6 Kyrgios (denotes next server) Boom! A cross-court winner. Pow! A brute-force unreturnable serve. Thwack! Another ace to seal the second set. Nick Kyrgios is two sets to the good!

Second set: Broady 4-6, 4-5* Kyrgios (denotes next server) Another service hold for Broady, who will make Kyrgios serve this out at least.

The Aussie men’s No 1, Alex De Minaur, is back in the game against Lorenzo Musetti, taking the second set 6-3 to level things up. A spot of bother for the 2016 champion Angelique Kerber – she’s 4-2 down in the first set to Kaia Kanepi.

First set: Broady 4-6, *3-5 Kyrgios (denotes next server) A Kyrgios ace whacks a ball-boy on the hip, the kid offering up a stoic smile to show he’s OK. Kyrgios pounces on a net-cord bounce to tuck away a drop shot, then powers down two aces while bantering with the crowd between points. They really should mic him up.

“The Kyrgios-Broady match is a delight,” says Belinda. “Love the spirit it is being played in – credit to both of them tonight so far.”

Absolutely agree, it’s nice to see. Broady has held serve again, and has two more chances to make something happen on the Kyrgios serve.

A big chance missed for Storm Sanders, who was a break up in the second set but has allowed Aryna Sabalenka to break back. Still plenty for the Belarussian to do at 5-7, 3-3 and clearly frustrated with herself.

Second set: Broady 4-6, *2-4 Kyrgios (denotes next server) The second set has followed the same pattern as the first, with Kyrgios breaking immediately and challenging his opponent to break back. No joy for Broady here, who gets to 15-all and is quickly left behind.

Second set: Broady 4-6, 2-3* Kyrgios (denotes next server) Liam Broady picks up just his fifth point on the Kyrgios serve as his opponent stays in front. In the next game, a big ace from Broady draws a grin from Kyrgios. It feels almost like an exhibition match.

Let’s have a look at results in the women’s draw today, starting with Garbiñe Muguruza, who eased through early on against France’s Clara Burel. Iga Swiatek outclassed British qualifier Harriet Dart 6-3, 6-0, and Simona Halep was too good for Poland’s Magdalena Frech. No 6 seed Anna Kontaveit is also through after defeating Katerina Siniakova.

There was an emotional win for Sam Stosur against fellow wildcard Robin Anderson and Heather Watson beat Mayar Sherif in three sets. Leylah Fernandez, beaten in the US Open final by Emma Raducanu, lost 6-4, 6-2 to Aussie wildcard Maddison Inglis and Petra Kvitova crashed out to Romania’s Sorana Cirstea.

Second set: Broady 4-6, 1-2* Kyrgios (denotes next server) The bad news for Kyrgios, who has taken complete control here, is that Daniil Medvedev, the de facto No 1 seed, lies in wait in the second round. Broady gets on the board in the second set with a solid hold.

First set: Broady 4-6, *0-2 Kyrgios (denotes next server) Kyrgios races to 40-0 and then tries a quick underarm serve which lands in the net. He offers an apology to the crowd and then, in the next rally, plays a tweener on his way to securing the hold. He’s having fun out there!

Second set: Broady 4-6, 0-1* Kyrgios (denotes next server) Broady fends off two break points before Kyrgios powers home a return to set up a third. A well-placed winner down the line saves it but Kyrgios wins the next rally. The break is starting to feel inevitable – and Kyrgios gets it when Broady nets!

A potentially big upset brewing over on Rod Laver, where wild card Storm Sanders has taken the first set 7-5 against Aryna Sabalenka. The No 2 seed rallied from two breaks down but lost her serve again at 5-5 and Sanders, who has never won a singles match here, serves it out!

First set: Broady *4-6 Kyrgios (denotes next server) At 30-15, Kyrgios takes his time, gathers his thoughts and hammers down a wide, unstoppable serve. He follows it up with an ace, and that’s the first set in the books.

Not such good news for home hopes on Margaret Court Arena, though – Alex De Minaur has lost the first set 6-3 to Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti.

First set: Broady 4-5* Kyrgios (denotes next server) Broady, who is sporting a quite spectacular pair of multi-pastel shorts – perfect for strutting down Brighton Beach later – will make Kyrgios serve it out. There have been no cracks in the Australian’s armour so far …

First set: Broady *3-5 Kyrgios (denotes next server) Broady holds to love – can he cause Kyrgios any problems on his own serve? No, would be the answer – Kyrgios mixing it up and not giving his opponent a sniff. Broady serving to stay in the set …

First set: Broady *2-4 Kyrgios (denotes next server) Broady is hanging in there, but struggling to make any in-roads on the Kyrgios serve as the home hopeful stays a break up.

Here’s more on Andy Murray’s terrific first-round victory:

First set: Broady *1-3 Kyrgios (denotes next server) Kyrgios has his first serve motoring, clinching the hold with a 225kph ace.

On Rod Laver Arena, Aryna Sabalenka had slipped two breaks down to Aussie outsider Storm Sanders – but has one break back to trail 4-2 in the first set.

First set: Broady 1-2* Kyrgios (denotes next server) An important hold for Broady, who may not have expected his opponent to start so fluently. Broady beat Russia’s Roman Safiullin in his final qualifer – but Safiullin is in the draw too as a lucky loser, and currently 2-1 down to Alex Molcan in what looks an easier assignment.

First set: Broady *0-2 Kyrgios (denotes next server) A straightforward hold for Kyrgios, who looks very much up for this, posturing between points and bossing affairs early on.

First set: Broady 0-1* Kyrgios (denotes next server) Kyrgios has been short of match practice but allays any early fears for the home crowd with an immediate break, revving up the fans after a Broady lob goes long.

Elsewhere, an impressive victory for Dan Evans, who follows Murray into the second round with a 6-4, 6-3, 6-0 success over David Goffin.

Let’s have a quick look around the courts: on Rod Laver, home wild card Storm Sanders has an early break against the No 2 seed, Aryna Sabalenka. More good news for Aussies hopes next door, with Alex De Minaur a break up on Lorenzo Musetti in the opening set.

Thanks Mike, and hello everyone. The night session is just beginning around Melbourne Park – and next up on the John Cain Arena, it’s only Nick Kyrgios, up against the British qualifier Liam Broady …

Here’s the full story on that earlier Tennis Australia statement:

And with that I will hand you over to Niall McVeigh, who will see you through the opening stages of the evening session. Cheerio.

Murray continues: “Obviously when we came back last year to play after the enforced break with Covid, we played with no fans in the stadium. It was tough. It is not loads of fun. You know, we train and practice to allow us to play and compete in atmospheres like this on courts like this to entertain you guys and perform in front of you. It’s an incredible atmosphere and I am so happy.”

Asked about what his expectations are for this Open fortnight, he says:

“Hopefully keep improving, there are things in my game I can definitely do better. I would love to have a deep run here if possible. It’s tough but I would like to have a deep run. It’s something I have not had in one of the slams since I came back from the injury and it is something that is motivating me. I play some of my best tennis over the years here, I feel comfortable here and I hope I can do it this tournament.”

And with that, he’s gone, the day session ends, and the night session begins.

Asked about his opponent, who he also beat at the Sydney International in the run-up to the Australian Open:

“It was a brutal match in Sydney, we played three hours over three sets. I am sure you guys can tell from watching. He hits the ball huge from the back of the court and I had to do a lot of running today, a lot of defending. He is not the sort of guy whose name you want to see next to yours in the draw very often. Obviously a bit of confidence from the win last week, and thankfully managed to get over the line today.”

What a performance from Murray. It was classic Murray, five sets, never making things easy for himself, but a real warrior’s performance. Here he is now, speaking on-court:

“It has been a tough, tough three, four years. Put in a lot of work to get back here. I played on this court many times.The atmosphere is incredible. I have always had fantastic support. This is the one where I thought potentially I had played my last match three years ago, but it is amazing to be back winning a five- set battle like that. Couldn’t ask for any more.”

And now it Basilashvili’s turn for his radar to fail him, indeed it goes completely AWOL as Murray goes 40-0 up and brings up three match points. He needs all three, but he gets there in the end as Basilashvili puts one final ball into the net! Game, set and match Murray, the wildcard!

Fifth set: *Basilashvili 1-6, 6-3, 4-6, 7-6(5), 4-5 Murray (*denotes next server) Murray shouts in frustration as his radar fails him and he falls to 30-15 but all his experience shines through as he scrambles back to hold and move within a break of the match and a place in the second round!