Just last September, Maddison Inglis was supporting Leylah Fernandez from the stands during the latter's run to the US Open final. Now, she has ended the Canadian's Melbourne Park campaign in the first round.
Inglis — a wildcard at Melbourne Park — was a gracious winner on Tuesday, admitting she felt Fernandez was not at peak fitness for the season-opening major. But the significance of the 24-year-old's achievement cannot be understated, given it was only her fifth major and she had never before progressed past the first round.
Among those appearances were two previous tilts at the Australian Open main draw, with the first back as 2016. "This is my first main-draw win. I had thought of that moment for a long time," said Inglis, who hails from Perth. "It was just pure happiness. I was so happy. I saw the ball go out [on match point] and I looked at my box. It was an amazing moment. "I'm really so happy I could have it here in Melbourne, with all my friends and family there. It was incredible. I'm really lucky." While disappointed to have never advanced from the opening round of the major until Tuesday, Inglis realised this had helped her deal with the daunting prospect of facing a player of Fernandez's calibre."Today was the most comfortable I'd ever felt out there, which probably has a lot to do with how I played."The win will not only give Inglis a dose of confidence, but will help ease the financial pressure she and so many players ranked outside the top 100 face on the WTA and ATP tours. She will at least earn $154,000 by reaching the second round, while another win will net her a pay packet of $221,000. Maddison Inglis will receive the largest payday of her career, regardless of how deep she goes in Melbourne. Considering Inglis — whose highest ranking is 112 — had earned $530,716 during her career prior to this week, the financial boost is welcome relief."Now that I have turned 24, I'm still getting help from [Tennis Australia]. Once you turn 24, you have to find external help and coaches. "It's going to be a massive help for me this year, financially, which is great. Then I cannot focus and stress too much about that and just focus on things on court. It's a huge help." Fernandez was full of praise for Inglis, noting her tenacity as one of her shining qualities as a player."She works hard. She fights for every point. She runs for every ball. She's a great all-court player.Inglis will next play France's 70th-ranked Caroline Garcia in the second round on Thursday.
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