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2020 Australian Open Day 2: Madison Keys, Rafael Nadal cruise through first round

Rafael Nadal of Spain waves to the crowd after winning his Men's Singles first round match against Hugo Dellien of Bolivia on day two of the 2020 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on January 21, 2020 in Melbourne, Australia.
Rafael Nadal of Spain waves to the crowd after winning his Men's Singles first round match against Hugo Dellien of Bolivia on day two of the 2020 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on January 21, 2020 in Melbourne, Australia. (Fred Lee/Getty Images)

Here’s a recap of the action from Day 2 of the Australian Open in Melbourne.

Rafael Nadal flies through opening round

Top-ranked Rafael Nadal made quick work of his opening round match at the Australian Open on Tuesday.

Nadal flew past Hugo Dellien in straight sets at Rod Laver Arena, beating the Bolivian 6-2, 6-3, 6-0 in a match that lasted just over two hours.

“A positive start,” Nadal said, via the Associated Press. “What you want in the first round is to win — straight sets is better.”

Nadal fell in the final of the Australian Open last year, dropping the championship match in straight sets to Novak Djokovic. The Spaniard boasts an impressive 19 Grand Slam wins, though only has one of them at the Australian Open — which came in 2009.

Madison Keys cruises

Madison Keys had no issues getting through her opening match on Tuesday.

Keys, the No. 10 seed, cruised past Russia’s Daria Kasatkina 6-3, 6-1 in just 57 minutes at Melbourne Arena.

The 24-year-old Illinois native also found a pair of “super fans” in the audience after her match, something that caught her off guard being on the other side of the world.

Keys got off to a similar start last year at the first Grand Slam event of the season, flying through her first three rounds before being knocked out in the Round of 16. She has now won 21 straight first round Grand Slam matches.

Maria Sharapova falls early

Former World No. 1 Maria Sharapova was knocked out of the Australian Open early on Tuesday.

Sharapova fell to No. 19 Donna Vekic in straight sets in the opening round of the tournament, falling 6-3, 6-4. Vekic rallied back in the second set from a 4-1 hole, too, to secure the match in 81 minutes.

Sharapova earned her spot in the tournament as a wildcard after battling a shoulder injury all last season. The 32-year-old has fallen to No. 145 in the world, and hasn’t made it past the quarterfinals at a Grand Slam event since the French Open in 2018.

"I can speak about my struggles and the things that I've gone through with my shoulder, but it's not really in my character to," Sharapova said, via the WTA. "So, you know, I was there. I put myself out there. You know, as tough as it was, you know, I finished the match and, yeah, it wasn't the way that I wanted."

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