Mumbai: Alex Michelsen swings a baseball bat left-handed. He kicks a football with his left foot. But he plays tennis right-handed. It’s a switch that makes the 20-year-old American a tricky opponent, as world No.12 Stefanos Tsitsipas experienced first-hand at the Australian Open on Monday.
Playing at the John Cain Arena in Melbourne Park, Michelsen pulled off a 7-5, 6-3, 2-6, 6-4 first round upset over the Greek 11th seed to pick up his first-ever win over a top 20 player at a Grand Slam. Central to the triumph was his solidity and angles he was able to produce from his backhand side.
Tsitsipas, the 2023 Australian Open finalist, boasts a game that revolves around a powerful forehand and big serve. His backhand, an elegant one-hander, though a capable weapon, is still his weaker shot. On Sunday, he was often dragged into a cross-court backhand rally against a player whose natural lefty-ness gave him an advantage.
Michelsen was able to produce the angles to help open up the court. And often he would send the ball down the line – one of the more difficult shots in the sport – with ease.
Just as he did, dramatically, with Tsitsipas down 0-30 at 3-3 in the fourth set. The Greek dominated the rally, sending the American to and fro across the baseline. Tsitsipas placed an inside-out forehand deep on Michelsen’s left. But the American scrambled, running the width of the court to hammer a two-handed winner down the line.
In all, Michelsen hit 15 backhand winners to Tsitsipas’ five, and committed 22 forced and unforced errors on the same side compared to the Greek’s 46.
But it isn’t just a strong backhand that makes the American an exciting prospect. He plays with a lot of variation, throwing in drop shots and slices to breakaway from baseline brawls and upset rhythm. It’s a style for which he credits his parents, both of whom were college-level players.
“My mom would stay at the baseline and make every ball, I took that from her,” he had told The New York Times. “My dad likes to serve and volley, come to the net and be more creative. I took that from him. I feel like I’ve combined those two very well.”
Playing in a certain way is one thing. Tackling a top 20 player in a Grand Slam requires a strong mentality as well.
Earlier in his still nascent career, Michelsen was known to be a bit of a hot head, who would break racquets and send tennis balls over the stands. The mentality changed in the summer of 2023 when his coach Eric Diaz told him off.
“I told him, ‘I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but you are pretty good and it’s about time to let the tennis do the talking and to control the attitude. You are going to be on stages where you will have a lot of eyes on you,’” Diaz told NYT. “I think the realization set in and the maturity set in. He’s really carrying himself well, now.”
On Sunday, he remained focused.
“I stayed really composed today, but I don’t do that every time, unfortunately,” Michelsen, the world No.42, said after the match. “I’m working to get there. Sometimes I just sit in my room, and I meditate sometimes and tell myself, ‘stay calm under pressure’. I did that really well today.”
And with it, he accounted for the first major upset of this year’s Australian Open.
Djokovic, Swiatek off to shaky start
Novak Djokovic saw Nishesh Basavareddy, 19, match him with an impressive array of shots before the 10-winner reeled him in 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-2.
Iga Swiatek, the women’s singles second seed, also had a tough start despite beating Katerina Siniakova 6-3, 6-4. The Pole had to overcome breaks of serve in both sets before moving into the second round.
Sinner, Alcaraz cruise
Defending champion Jannik Sinner, still facing doping questions, was made to work hard by Chile’s Nicolas Jarry before the Italian world No.1 completed a 7-6(2), 7-6(5), 6-1 win.
Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz turned on the style to beat Kazakhstan’s Alexander Shevchenko 6-1, 7-5, 6-1 in a match that lasted just under two hours.
