Two Seeded Players Lose in First Round at the Adelaide International 

Russia's Anna Kalinskaya hits a return against Belarus's Victoria Azarenka during their women's singles match at the Brisbane International tennis tournament in Brisbane on January 2, 2024. (AFP)
Russia's Anna Kalinskaya hits a return against Belarus's Victoria Azarenka during their women's singles match at the Brisbane International tennis tournament in Brisbane on January 2, 2024. (AFP)
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Two Seeded Players Lose in First Round at the Adelaide International 

Russia's Anna Kalinskaya hits a return against Belarus's Victoria Azarenka during their women's singles match at the Brisbane International tennis tournament in Brisbane on January 2, 2024. (AFP)
Russia's Anna Kalinskaya hits a return against Belarus's Victoria Azarenka during their women's singles match at the Brisbane International tennis tournament in Brisbane on January 2, 2024. (AFP)

Former French Open champion Barbora Krejcikova and Beatriz Haddad Maia lost their first-round matches Monday at the Adelaide International.

Qualifier Anna Kalinskaya beat 2021 Roland Garros winner and No. 4-seeded Krejcikova 7-5, 3-6, 7-5. Kalinskaya had three match points on Krejcikova’s serve when leading 6-5 in the deciding set and converted the third for the win.

Former French Open finalist Pavlyuchenkova breezed through qualifying and beat fifth-seeded Haddad Maia 6-3, 6-4.

The joint WTA-ATP tournament is the biggest tune-up event this week for the Australian Open, which begins on Sunday at Melbourne Park.

In another first-round Adelaide result, Ana Bogdan beat Katie Boulter, who represented Britain at last week's United Cup tournament, 6-3, 6-4.

Elena Rybakina, who won Sunday’s Brisbane International, and Jessica Pegula are the top women’s seeds. Neither played Monday.

Tommy Paul is the top-seeded player in the ATP portion of the tournament. In a first-round result Monday, Jack Draper beat fifth-seeded Sebastian Baez 6-1, 6-3.

At the Hobart International WTA tournament, top-seeded Elise Mehrtens, who won the tournament in 2017 and 2018, beat 2022 Australian Open finalist Danielle Collins 6-2, 6-3.

“Collins is) definitely a tough opponent in the first round. She can definitely strike the ball very hard,” Mertens said. “The weather was in my advantage, a little bit more wind.”

The Belgian player next faces Slovakia’s Anna-Karolina Schmiedlova, who beat fellow qualifier Maria Camila Osorio Serrano 1-6, 7-6 (4), 7-5.



FIFA Suspends Argentina Goalkeeper for 2 Matches in World Cup Qualifying

Argentina's goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez holds a ball while warming up prior to a qualifying soccer match against Colombia for the FIFA World Cup 2026 at the Metropolitano Roberto Melendez stadium in Barranquilla, Colombia, Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)
Argentina's goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez holds a ball while warming up prior to a qualifying soccer match against Colombia for the FIFA World Cup 2026 at the Metropolitano Roberto Melendez stadium in Barranquilla, Colombia, Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)
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FIFA Suspends Argentina Goalkeeper for 2 Matches in World Cup Qualifying

Argentina's goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez holds a ball while warming up prior to a qualifying soccer match against Colombia for the FIFA World Cup 2026 at the Metropolitano Roberto Melendez stadium in Barranquilla, Colombia, Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)
Argentina's goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez holds a ball while warming up prior to a qualifying soccer match against Colombia for the FIFA World Cup 2026 at the Metropolitano Roberto Melendez stadium in Barranquilla, Colombia, Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)

Argentina's soccer association (AFA) said on Friday that FIFA suspended goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez for two matches of South American World Cup qualifying in October.
The decision rules out the 32-year-old from official games in the round-robin competition against Venezuela and Bolivia on Oct. 10 and 15.
AFA said in a statement that FIFA's disciplinary commission sanctioned Martínez due to incidents in two World Cup qualifying matches against Chile and Colombia earlier this month. The soccer body did not describe which incidents led to the punishment, The Associated Press reported.
Martínez made an obscene gesture after his team's 3-0 win against Chile by holding the Copa America trophy close to his genitals, as he did after the South American team lifted the World Cup title in Qatar in the end of 2022.
Later, he slapped a local cameraman after Argentina's 2-1 defeat against Colombia in Barranquilla.
Argentina's soccer body said it “absolutely disagrees” with FIFA's decision.
Argentina leads South American World Cup qualifying with 18 points after eight games, followed by Colombia (16) and Uruguay (15).