Australian Open: No. 3 seed Garbine Muguruza upset by Hsieh Su-Wei
MELBOURNE — Reigning Wimbledon champion Garbine Muguruza was upset by 88th-ranked Hsieh Su-Wei of Tapiei 7-6 (7-1), 6-4 in the second round of the Australian Open on a Thursday.
The third-seeded Muguruza is the highest seed to fall in the women’s draw. The next highest to depart the Australian Open was fifth-seeded Venus Williams, who lost on the opening day of the competition.
Players were performing in intense heat conditions as temperatures soared to over 100 degrees.
"She's definitely a very tricky opponent — today she played well," said Muguruza, acknowledging that the heat was bothersome, but it wasn't the hottest conditions she'd experienced in Australia. "I could have done things better, but at the end, she deserves to win."
Muguruza, who ranked as high as No. 1 last season, finished 2017 with a year-end best finish of No. 2. Currently ranked third, Muguruza had an opportunity to return to the No. 1 ranking this fortnight but had to reach the final.
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Her 2017 success, which also included the Cincinnati title, resulted in her being named the 2017 ITF World Champion.
No Spanish woman has ever won the Australian Open title, although Conchita Martinez (1998) and Arantxa Sanchez Vicario (1994-95) reached the final during their careers.
Wimbledon was the second career Grand Slam trophy for Muguruza, who won her first at the 2016 French Open.
Muguruza made too many unforced errors against Hsieh — 43 — which created issues for her throughout the 1-hour, 59-minute match.
The Spaniard has had a frustrating start to the 2018 season. In Brisbane, where she received a first-round bye, she retired during her second-round match with cramps midway through the third set. In Sydney, a thigh injury prevented her from playing her quarterfinal match.
The 32-year-old Hsieh's best Australian Open result came in 2008 when as a qualifier she journeyed to the round-of-16 before losing to Justine Henin.
Follow Sandra Harwitt on Twitter @TennisGrapevine. Contributing: Associated Press.
