Melbourne - Jelena Dokic is using the appearance at only her second Australian Open in the past seven years as emotional body armour against a personal life which at one time was off the rails.
The 25-year-old Belgrade-born Australian who has brought her ranking back to 187, won a match at the venue for the first time since 1999.
But in a tear-stained interview, she revealed that the estrangement from her family has taken a huge emotional toll.
Melbourne - Andy Roddick says he's impressed with new ATP boss Adam Helfant, after meeting his fellow American at the Australian Open.
"I actually was lucky enough to have dinner with him the other night. I was pretty impressed," said Roddick. "He didn't come in with kind of this braggadocio attitude of what he's done, whatever. He kind of came in and he had his notepad and his pen, and he asked questions, and he wrote down notes. He didn't come in like a know-it- all."
Melbourne - Even ice-calm Roger Federer admits that his stress levels have eased in recent months as he slipped from tennis' top ranking.
Still ranked second, the Swiss star said that he feels an eerie calm as he pursues a fourth title in six years at the Australian Open.
"Maybe I'm a bit more relaxed," he said after passing the first round against Italy's Andreas Seppi. "When you're number one you put your head down, you try to win as many tournaments as possible."
Melbourne - Reigning junior champion Bernard Tomic proved himself a rising force at the senior level as a first-round victory on Monday made him the youngest male winner of a match at the Australian Open.
The 16-year-old whose controversial father has been in trouble with Tennis Australia for outbursts during matches, showed mature form in his first Grand Slam with a 7-6 (7-5), 1-6, 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (8-6) first-round win over 73rd-ranked Italian Potito Starace.
Melbourne - Jelena Jankovic was forced to step lively on court at the Australian Open Monday as the soles of her new shoes failed to protect her feet from the Melbourne heat.
"My feet were burning," said the Serbian top seed, who reached the second round over Austrian Yvonne Meusburger 6-1, 6-3.
"The soles of my shoes got so hot.
"During the changeovers I was putting my feet on ice, trying to cool them down."
Melbourne - One-time Grand Slam winner Andy Roddick renewed his fight to regain relevance in tennis on Monday, beginning his Australian Open campaign with a defeat of Swedish qualifier Bjorn Rehnquist 6-0, 6-2, 6-2.
The number eight US player lifted his lone major honour at the 2003 US Open, then gradually slid into neutral and fell from the discussion when big titles were mentioned.
Melbourne - Jelena Dokic is using the appearance at only her second Australian Open in the past seven years as emotional body armour against a personal life which at one time was off the rails.
Melbourne - Andy Roddick says he's impressed with new ATP boss Adam Helfant, after meeting his fellow American at the Australian Open.
Melbourne - Even ice-calm Roger Federer admits that his stress levels have eased in recent months as he slipped from tennis' top ranking.
Melbourne - Reigning junior champion Bernard Tomic proved himself a rising force at the senior level as a first-round victory on Monday made him the youngest male winner of a match at the Australian Open.
Melbourne - Jelena Jankovic was forced to step lively on court at the Australian Open Monday as the soles of her new shoes failed to protect her feet from the Melbourne heat.
