Lorenzo Sonego’s jaw-dropping shot against Stan Wawrinka in the Australian Open has tennis fans dubbing it the “best ever”. The Italian star edged out the three-time Grand Slam winner in the first round of the tournament on Tuesday (January 14), winning the four-set thriller 6-4, 5-7, 7-5, 7-5.
The 29-year-old, who is currently ranked 55th in the world, put in quite the shift in a match that lasted just over three hours in front of a packed crowd at Court 6 of Melbourne Park. Among the supreme tennis that was being played, it was one shot that left fans wanting more.
While serving 5-5 in the third set, Wawrinka was facing break points and, after an entertaining back and forth, it looked like the former Australian Open champion had done enough for the point when hitting a drop volley with Sonego scrambling back to attempt a return.
While it looked improbable that Sonego would be able to execute a shot worthy to keep the point alive, he went one step further. After racing back to hit the ball in time, he pulled out a behind-the-back flick shot that left the Swiss star rooted to the spot with it landing in his far corner.
Stunned by his own heroics, the Turin native lifted his arms in celebration and roared to the crowd who responded in kind as they were treated to the shot of the tournament so far. Fans were in disbelief when watching the shot on social media with one X user hailing Sonego’s winner: “Think this might be the best shot ive ever seen”.
Another fan paid tribute to his sheer athleticism as they wrote: “This is nuts. The speed of some of these players. How did he get to that ball in the first place? To do this on break point is also crazy. Hats off to Sonego”.
While a third user recognised the quality of the winner, they claimed that Wawrinka’s positioning was off: “Great shot, But, Stan the Man should have been there for it.” The Italian will now go on to face teenage sensation Joao Fonseca, 18, in the second round on Thursday (January 16).
The Brazilian star defeated world number nine Andrey Rublev in straight sets to progress to the next stage. As for Wawrinka, his elimination spells the third time in a row he’s been knocked out of the first round in Australia. The 39-year-old has struggled in recent years and last went past the fourth round of a Grand Slam back in 2020.
Content Source: www.express.co.uk