US Champ Stephens Out, Ostapenko Into second Round in Australia

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Joined States' Sloane Stephens makes an arrival to China's Zhang Shuai amid their first round match at the Australian Open tennis titles in Melbourne, Australia, Monday, Jan. 15, 2018. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara) The Associated Press

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Sloane Stephens' troubles since her triumphant her first Grand Slam title at the U.S. Open have proceeded with a first-round misfortune at the Australian Open.

No. 13-seeded Stephens was serving for the match in the tenth round of the second set against Zhang Shuai however dropped her serve. She was defeated in the sudden death round and in the third set, with Zhang winning 2-6, 7-6 (2), 6-2.

It generally molded as an extreme opener for Stephens, who hasn't won a visit level match since her triumph at the U.S. Open a year ago and confronting a player positioned No. 34, two spots off being seeded for the main major of the season.

Stephens didn't play a year ago's Australian Open as a result of left foot damage that kept her out of activity until Wimbledon. Since beating Madison Keys in the U.S. Open last, Stephens has lost eight matches.

"Sloane she plays so well, won the U.S. Open — everybody knows — she's an incredible player," Zhang said. "I know how hard I'm functioning ... coming to Australia I'm prepared for each match, each player. That is the reason I won today."

There were two first-time significant champs a year ago, and both were in real life first-up on abutting show courts.

French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko made a positive begin with a 6-1, 6-4 prevail upon 37-year-old Francesca Schiavone. The age hole between 20-year-old Ostapenko and 2010 French Open champ Schiavone was the greatest of any in the first round at Melbourne Park.

Ostapenko spared two break focuses in the third round of the opening set and secured the set with an expert. After a trade of administration softens up the second, Ostapenko got the unequivocal break in the ninth diversion, at that point served out the match after twofold blaming on her first match point.

The seventh-seeded Ostapenko is playing her third Australian Open — she progressed to the third round at Melbourne Park a year ago. Schiavone was playing in the Australian Open primary draw for the seventeenth time.

Fifth-seeded Venus Williams, who lost a year ago's Australian Open last to her sister, Serena, is the main player more seasoned than Schiavone in the primary draw of the ladies' singles. Williams was playing Belinda Bencic in the accompanying match on Rod Laver Arena.

In other early first-round outcomes, twelfth seeded Julia Goerges stretched out her triumphant streak to 15 matches with a 6-4, 6-4 prevail upon Sofia Kenin, Alize Cornet beat Chinese special case passage Wang Xinyu 6-4, 6-2 and No. 19 Magdalena Rybarikova beat Taylor Townsend 6-0, 7-5.