Centre Court, second match. Head-to-head: Dellacqua leads 1-0
Talk about a trip down memory lane for Casey Dellacqua on Thursday.
The world No.29 will face Karin Knapp in the second round in Hobart – a repeat of the match that marked her breakthrough into the public consciousness, her first run the to the second week of a Grand Slam and her rise to Australian No.1.
The last time she faced the Italian, in the first round of the 2008 Australian Open, Dellacqua was 22 years old and still in search of her first win in Melbourne. After five straight first-round exits, she looked set for a sixth when Knapp took the first set 6-4.
What followed was the making of the Perth native – battling back to take the second set 6-3, she came out on top in a marathon 14-game final set, prevailing 8-6 to the delight of the Melbourne faithful.
That win sparked a memorable run to the fourth round that featured wins over No.15 seed Patty Schnyder – a former Hobart International champion – and former world No.1 Amelie Mauresmo. After years in the shadows, Dellacqua was a world-beater.
And here we are, seven years later, with Casey top-ranked at a WTA tournament for the first time in her career. It’s been a tough start to the season for the 29-year-old, who battled to her first win of the 2015 season against Lauren Davis after three defeats on Hopman Cup duty for Australia.
Knapp, one of three Italians left in the draw – Dellacqua is the sole remaining Aussie – opened her Hobart campaign with a well-earned win over Ajla Tomljanovic and will look to assert her power game against the top seed, whose defensive acumen will be crucial.
A place in the quarter-finals is up for grabs, and it is Dellacqua who starts as the favourite. Will Knapp push her all the way once more, or will Casey ride those found memories all the way to the last eight?
Whoever prevails will be back on court to open our Centre Court night session after Wednesday’s washout.
Order of play, 10am start (PDF)
Centre Court, 11am start
[3] C Giorgi (ITA) v K Kanepi (EST) – walkover
[1] C Dellacqua (AUS) v K Knapp (ITA)
[9] R Vinci (ITA) v H Watson (GBR)
After suitable rest:
[8] A Riske (USA) or B Jovanovski (SRB) v [WC] D Hantuchova (SVK) or [2] Z Diyas (KAZ)
Not Before 7:00 pm
After suitable rest:
[1] C Dellacqua (AUS) or K Knapp (ITA) v [Q] K Kozlova (UKR) or [Q] M Brengle (USA)
V Diatchenko (RUS) & M Niculescu (ROU) v J Cepelova (SVK) & A Rosolska (POL)
Court Events Tasmania, 10am start
[WC] D Hantuchova (SVK) v [2] Z Diyas (KAZ)
[Q] K Kozlova (UKR) v [Q] M Brengle (USA)
A Nancarrow (AUS) & S Sanders (AUS) v K Bertens (NED) & J Larsson (SWE)
Not Before 3pm
[3] C Giorgi (ITA) v K Nara (JPN)
Court Heart FM, 10am start
[8] A Riske (USA) v B Jovanovski (SRB)
S Soler-Espinosa (ESP) & M Torró-Flor (ESP) v [4] L Arruabarrena (ESP) & I Olaru (ROU)