Google News
Australia's Aleksandar Vukic, 25, was absolutely thrilled after clinching his first ever Grand Slam main draw win at the Australian Open. Vukic, who is enjoying a career-high ranking of No. 144 in the world, surprised US Open quarterfinalist Lloyd Harris 4-6 6-3 7-t 7-6 (3) to reach the Australian Open second round.
“[I’m] over the moon. [I’m] so happy to have won my first Grand Slam main draw match. To do it on that court especially, I think it was one of the loudest atmospheres I’ve ever seen, to be honest and it was all for me and all for the Aussies and I couldn’t have done it without them.
It's a dream, it really is,” Vukic said in his post-match media conference," Vukic said, per The First Serve. Vukic was grateful to the crowd for their support. “You grow up as a kid watching that court, watching the pros take on that.
I never thought it would become a reality. I was trying to use the crowd as much as possible but also try and remain calm and play tennis and I think I did a pretty good job at that today,” Vukic said.
Vukic plays Radu Albot next
Vukic, who made the Adelaide 2 quarterfinal last week, is confident he has the game to compete against regular Tour level players.
“I feel very comfortable with these guys for sure," Vukic insisted. "I think it just depends on the matchup and depends on the style. I feel like I do match up well with big hitters because I have a similar style where I rely a lot on my serve.
So when there’s someone else that does that I know how to play them, because I know how to play me in a way. I draw on that. "I've always thought the level wasn’t as big of a difference, but these guys more consistently playing at the level, I think I’m hitting that consistency a little bit more."