Čilić Opens Australian Open with a Match Not Seen in 14 Years

Marin Čilić (37) rolled back the years in Melbourne, defeating Germany’s Daniel Altmaier (27) in the opening round of the Australian Open.

The Croatian veteran, currently ranked No. 70 in the ATP standings, stormed to a 6–0, 6–0, 7–6 victory over the world No. 44 in a dominant performance that made a bit of history.

It was the first time in Čilić’s career that he opened a Grand Slam match by winning the first two sets 6–0. While he’s notched multiple “bagel” sets before at majors, never before had he started a match with two in a row.

Čilić also became the first unseeded player to win the opening two sets 6–0 at a Grand Slam since Philipp Petzschner did it at the 2012 Australian Open against Lukáš Rosol.

In the second round, Čilić will face the winner of Denis Shapovalov (26) and Yunchaokete Bu (24). Shapovalov, the Canadian world No. 23, enters as the favorite, while China’s Bu sits at No. 120.

 

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