Yesterday was Australian Day and I would like to take a moment to talk about what is going on down under. The Australian Open, which is one of the four most important tennis tournaments each year, has been full of inspirational moments as well as tragic defeats. On the women’s side, most of the top seeds have fallen and there have been two players that have had to pull out of the tournament in the middle of their matches. On the men’s side the seeds have been a bit more consistent, but there have also been two men who have had to pull out due to exhaustion and injury. The heat is rising and the fitness of these players is really coming into play. Check out all of the up to date scores and stories as they unfold.
The biggest story that is going on down under is about one of the Australian’s very own. Jelena Dokic has recently returned to tennis as a player for Australia. She fell off the scene for a while because she was dealing with an abusive father who used to be her coach. She went through a couple years of dealing with depression and not knowing if she would return to play tennis ever again. She has now cut her father completely out of her life and is one of the most passionate players on the court. Don’t worry about her being without a key family component, though. Her boyfriend and his brother (who is her coach) are at every match and exude the same passion and emotion for Jelena as she has been exuding in her matches. Not to mention the entire country of Australia that has embraced this budding comeback story. After her first round she became emotional and told the press that winning her first round match was more than just a victory on the court. She started the tournament being ranked at 174 and now is withing the top 100. With a finish in the quarterfinals in a tight match against a top 3 player and multiple wins over other top ranked players, Jelena’s comeback trail is far from finished. Read more about her comeback on and off the court.
Have you been watching the Australian Open? What players have you been following? Are you inspired by Jelena or any other players? Fill us in!
