IGA SWIATEK vowed today to pick up her pace following her clunky 7-6 (5), 6-3 win over No 130-ranked Chinese qualifier Yuan Yue in the Australian Open first-round on Monday night. Swiatek knows she has plenty to work on in her bid for a first Australian Open title and a career Grand Slam.

After the No 2-ranked Swiatek won Wimbledon last year to go with her four French Open titles and her victory at the 2022 US Open, the Australian Open is the only major missing from her collection. She has twice reached the semi-finals.

Yuan was swinging freely and rifling winners as she took a 5-3 lead, and Swiatek had to switch things up.

“I was a bit rusty at the beginning,” she said. “Many ups and downs, but overall I have some stuff to work on. I’ll just focus on that.”

From 5-3 down in the first, she held a service game at love to force Yuan to serve for the set. Swiatek broke back to level and then, in the tiebreaker, she remained composed and converted on her second set point.

“I started a bit tight. I needed to get my legs moving. Go after my shots. Be brave with the decisions,” she said of the change up.

“It wasn’t perfect, but that’s why I’m happy,” added Swiatek, who has only ever lost once in the first round at a major. “It’s not hard to win matches when everything is going well. Today it wasn’t, but I was able to win.”

Meanwhile, things weren’t going so well for Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime whose Australian Open hopes were ended by cramp in the first round.

Auger-Aliassime is the first top-10 seed to fall at Melbourne Park, and he did not even make it to the end of his clash with Portugal’s Nuno Borges, calling it quits while trailing 3-6 6-4 6-4.

The seventh seed was strongly fancied for a good run at Melbourne Park having reached the semi-finals of the US Open amid an excellent second half of last season.

“I don’t have all the answers now,” he said. “I’m trying to be very professional at everything I do.”

Auger-Aliassime was clearly struggling with his left thigh and, after calling the trainer, he played just two points of the fourth set before shaking hands.

“I want to be on the court winning,” he said of his decision. “I want to be on the court competing with my opponent. I don’t want to be just standing there like a punching bag.”

Conditions were hot but far from extreme, however, Auger-Aliassime was not the only player stricken by cramp, with Canadian Marina Stakusic taken off court in a wheelchair after being forced to retire from her match.

Third seed Coco Gauff overcame more early serving issues in a 6-2 6-3 win over Kamilla Rakhimova.

The French Open champion was plagued by double faults last season and hit six more in the first set here.

She shrugged off concerns, though, saying: “It was just the first set. Only had one double in the second.

“I think both of us were struggling on the far side. The sun is right there. I had three doubles in the first game and, once I got through that game, it was pretty much smooth sailing from there.”