Her only Grand Slam victory against a top seed had so far taken place at the US Open, in 2015. Almost nine years later, Océane Dodin (27 years old, 95th WTA) did it again, eliminating, on Tuesday, in the first round of the Australian Open the Chinese Lin Zhu, seeded n°29. The 32nd player in the world, who reached the eighth in Melbourne last year, was overwhelmed by the high pace imposed from the start by her opponent who, as usual, alternated between winning shots (21) and unforced errors ( 37).
Well helped by a devastating serve (86% of points won behind her first ball), Dodin above all saved all the break points she had to face (8/8). Despite a lot of pain in her thigh at the start of the second set (and an imposing strap), the Lille resident held on, before shouting her joy on the match point (6-4-6-3). Thursday, against the Italian Martina Trevisan (59th WTA), she will try to qualify, for the first time in her career, for a third round of the Grand Slam.
