Fresh off helping the Polish team reach the United Cup final last week, No.20 seed Maja Chwalinska triumphed in a first-round Australian Open qualifying barnburner, defeating Dominika Salkova 7-6(3), 5-7, 7-6[10] in 3 hours and 20 minutes after saving two match points.

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Pitting two young talents with very different games against each other, the stylistic contrast and momentum shifts made for riveting entertainment. Chwalinska's speed and finesse put her in the driving seat as she edged a tight first set and advanced to a 5-3 lead in the second.

But Salkova's clean power, with which she racked up 64 winners and 89 unforced errors, came to the fore in the nick of time as she escaped from within two points of defeat. The 20-year-old Czech built a 5-3 lead of her own in the decider, and even as that slipped held her own through a number of gripping rallies to move out to 7-3 in the super-tiebreak.

But No.126-ranked Chwalinska, 23, gradually reeled Salkova in and used biting slices to draw key errors from her opponent.

Two (more) marathons

Chwalinska's victory wasn't even the longest match of the first round. That honor went to -- who else? -- No.5 seed Sara Sorribes Tormo, who needed 3 hours and 43 minutes to quell local wild card Jaimee Fourlis 7-6(5), 5-7, 6-4.

The third-longest match of the opening round was won by Belgium's Marie Benoit, who edged Britain's Yuriko Lily Miyazaki 5-7, 6-4, 7-6[8] in 2 hours and 56 minutes. Appropriately, two marathon victors will face off in the second round as Benoit takes on Chwalinska.

Three in-form winners

No.6 seed Polina Kudermetova enjoyed a spectacular breakthrough in Brisbane, qualifying and reaching the first WTA final of her career -- where the 21-year-old even took World No.1 Aryna Sabalenka to three sets. Despite playing eight matches last week, No.57-ranked Kudermetova avoided the pitfall of fatigue to defeat Susan Bandecchi 6-1, 7-5. She will next face former No.10 Kristina Mladenovic, who advanced 6-2, 6-4 over Louisa Chirico.

No.9 seed Kimberly Birrell also had an excellent Brisbane campaign, upsetting Emma Navarro en route to her first WTA 500 quarterfinal. As with Arina Rodionova in 2024, the Australian No.1 has had to play qualifying in Melbourne this year -- but Birrell, unbothered, navigated past Japanese 18-year-old Sara Saito 7-6(4), 6-2. She will take on compatriot Priscilla Hon, whom she defeated from a set and a break down in the Brisbane first round, next.

Gao Xinyu was a United Cup sensation last week after the 27-year-old, stepping in for Zheng Qinwen, delivered upsets of both Beatriz Haddad Maia and Laura Siegemund. The Chinese player didn't let up in Melbourne, whitewashing 20-year-old Dutchwoman Anouk Koevermans 6-0, 6-0 in just 63 minutes -- the only such scoreline of the tournament so far.

Three surprise upsets

No.1 seed Alycia Parks also came into Melbourne in strong form, having reached the Auckland semifinals last week. But the American committed 44 unforced errors in 17 games to fall 6-2, 6-3 to Mirjam Bjorklund. The No.759-ranked Swede now owns a 2-0 record against Parks.

No.18 seed Aoi Ito, last week's Canberra WTA 125 champion, was another in-form player in the draw. But the unorthodox 20-year-old Japanese player drew a younger compatriot who is familiar with her offbeat repertoire of shots. Sayaka Ishii, 19, had beaten Ito in both of their previous completed meetings and did so once again, advancing 6-3, 6-4.

After losing her first Australian Open qualifying round last year to Maria Timofeeva, Darya Astakhova did not compete again for nearly 12 months due to a shoulder injury. The 22-year-old returned to action last week, but lost her opener at the Nonthaburi ITF W75 to Rina Saigo and is now unranked. But a 1-6, 6-3, 6-0 upset of No.18 seed Ena Shibahara marked Astakhova's first win at any level since November 2023 -- and her emotion was evident as she sank to her knees in tears after converting her sixth match point.

Three youth vs. experience clashes

When Sara Errani, 37, competed in her first Australian Open qualifying event in 2007, 17-year-old Alina Korneeva had yet to be born. With two decades separating them, the pair squared off in the first round this year. Watched by No.4-ranked Italian compatriot and doubles partner Jasmine Paolini, it was Errani's all-court wizardry that blunted 2023 junior champion Korneeva's power 2-6, 6-3, 6-3. Errani will next face another 17-year-old, Brenda Fruhvirtova, who defeated No.27 seed Jana Fett 6-4, 6-2.

Robin Montgomery, 20, reached her first WTA semifinal last week in Auckland. The young American had no issue bringing that form into Melbourne, routing 33-year-old former No.35 Polona Hercog 6-2, 6-1 in 55 minutes.

Sara Bejlek, 18, is bidding to come through qualifying in Melbourne for the third year in a row. The Czech teenager got off to a positive start with a 6-0, 3-6, 6-2 defeat of 30-year-old Liechtensteiner Kathinka Von Deichmann, who was a finalist last week at the Nonthaburi ITF W75.