By Richard Pagliaro | Saturday, January 17, 2026
Photo credit: Australian Open Facebook
Maria Sakkari defied her own imagination in the wildest shot of Australian Open Day 1.
Pushed well off the court chasing a wide serve, watch Sakkari bend a brilliant forehand return around the net post that blew even her mind.
“I’ve never hit in my life, like I’m 30 years old now, I’ve been playing tennis for 25 years now,” Sakkari said. “I could never imagine that I could hit that kind of return. You see it when Roger hits it, Carlos and then myself.
“I’m like aah you know I’m pretty sure it’s gonna make probably one of the best shots of the tournament.”
Sakkari nominating herself for the best point of the tournament on Day 1 – things we LOVE to see 👌@wwos • @espn • @tntsports • @wowowtennis • #AO26 pic.twitter.com/kb5q33PHOY
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 18, 2026
The shot sparked Sakkari to a 6-4, 6-2 sweep of Frenchwoman Leolia Jeanjean on Margaret Court Arena.
Sakkari will play either eighth-seeded Mirra Andreeva, who just won Adelaide, or Donna Vekic in round two.
