Ten time Grand Slam winner Venus Williams has been bundled out of Australian Open after losin straitght sets to unknown Belinda Bencic in first round.
Venus Williams was the most consistent of any player on the WTA Tour last year, but she began 2018 by becoming one of the first upset victims at the Australian Open.
Williams, who was beaten in the 2017 final by her sister Serena, went down 6-3, 7-5 to Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic, following the defeat earlier of US Open champion Sloane Stephens, whose dreadful run continues.
Bencic, coached by Britain’s Iain Hughes, has long been touted as one of the game’s best prospects but her progress was halted last year when she missed five months due to having wrist surgery.
World number one and top seed Rafael Nadal cruised into the second round of the Australian Open as he ruthlessly dispatched Víctor Estrella Burgos of the Dominican Republic in Melbourne.