Alina Korneeva and Brenda Fruhvirtova are both 16, both recorded their first wins in a Grand Slam main draw on Sunday at the Australian Open and both are expecting bigger things in the future.
Fruhvirtova beat Anna Bogdan 2-6, 6-4, 6-3 on a far-flung Court 17 not long before Korneeva — the Australian Open junior champion last year — rallied to beat Sara Sorribes Tormo 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 on Court 6.
For Fruhvirtova, there’s likely to be a dramatic change in venue and match profile.
If she stayed up past midnight and watched the night matches at Rod Laver Arena, Fruhvirtova would have known before bedtime that she’d be facing defending champion Aryna Sabalenka in the second round.
Sabalenka needed just 53 minutes to oust 18-year-old qualifier Ella Seidel 6-0, 6-1 in a match that started at 11:41 p.m. local time. That’s because the men’s defending champion, Novak Djokovic, needed four hours to overcome another 18-year-old qualifier, Dino Prizmic, to open the night session on Melbourne Park’s main court.
“For sure it will be a great experience,” Fruhvirtova said. “Hopefully I will get some big court or a bigger one than today. I’m really looking forward!”
Not that she’ll be completely overawed. She played 2022 Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina in the first round at Roland Garros last year. Last week, she lost to U.S. Open champion Coco Gauff, who is still 19, in the second round of the WTA event in New Zealand.
“It also gave me some experience,” Fruhvirtova said. “Playing on such a big stage there are for sure some nerves before the match (but) I kind of know what I’m going into.
“And, for sure, it would be more exciting than to play on Court 17.”
Including fourth-seeded Gauff, who plays Monday for the first time in a major as a reigning Grand Slam champion, 11 teenagers made the women’s main draw at Melbourne Park.
Sara Bejlek, 17, lost to No. 32-seeded Leylah Fernandez, who reached the U.S. Open final as a teenager in 2021.
Another 16-year-old, Mirra Andreeva, will get started Monday against Bernarda Pera on Court 12.
All the focus on the teenage players at Melbourne Park is nothing really new, at least for Fruhvirtova.
“I think it’s pretty normal, because everyone is watching the rising stars,” she said. “It’s really good to in that light, I think.”
Korneeva may even get to face another teenager in the next round. But only if Brenda’s older sister, 18-year-old Linda Fruhvirtova, can upset 10th-seeded Beatriz Haddad Maia.
Not that she’s thinking too much about the younger players collectively.
“I’m trying to focus on myself. I’m not thinking about other girls, how they played and when they win or lose,” Korneeva said. “I think everybody, it doesn’t matter what age you are, you try to just do everything on the court that you can.”
Korneeva won the Australian Open junior title last year, and so feels fairly comfortable with the Melbourne Park setting.
“I’m not trying to think about what I did last year and what I won last year, I just try to think what I have to do now,” she said. “But, of course, it’s so good that I played already in (the) Australian Open. I know the organization. I know some people here, some organizers here, and they know me.”
Court 6 was a different experience, though, with an adjacent bar and terrace and loud music in the background.
“When the match started, of course, it was a bit something new for me — a bit loud,” she said. “But at the same time I was really happy for these fans because people here, the Australian fans, have so (much) energy. I think this really helped me. ”
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