Sania Mirza and Rajeev Ram advanced to second round of the Australian Open mixed doubles

Sania Mirza and her American partner Rajeev Ram advanced to the second round of the Australian Open mixed doubles.

On Thursday, Aleksandra Krunic and Nikola Cacic of Serbia won in straight sets to start the tournament.

Ram came out firing on both ends of the court and at the net, anchoring a 6-3 7-6(3) victory in the first round that lasted 69 minutes. Ram is the event's defending champion. In 2021, he and Czech partner Barbora Krejcikova won the mixed title here.

Mirza, who will retire at the end of the 2022 season, also performed admirably in the competition.

They had an opportunity to take the lead as early as the second game, but Mirza slammed a forehand into the net on the game's final point

The team earned another chance on Krunic's serve, but Mirza couldn't finish the point with a volley, so the point was lost. They did, however, get a break on the final point.

Ram subsequently won the next game at love, giving him a 4-1 lead.

As the team sailed to a first-set advantage, Mirza made a lot of first serves as well. The Indo-American team won the set because to Ram's excellent serve and Mirza's beautiful volleys.

On a bad return from Cacic, Mirza unleashed her huge forehand to Krunic, earning the opening break chance of the second set. On the deciding point, however, the Indian hit the forehand long.

In the sixth game, Mirza's remarkable cross-court winner gave the side two break points on Krunic's serve.

The Serbians, however, kept the game alive when Krunic served wide and Mirza's reply was despatched by Cacic for a volley winner.

At 5-5, Krunic hit a huge serve for a critical hold, and Mirza now had to serve under duress to force a tie-breaker. The Indian, on the other hand, did not make a blunder and finished the game at love.

Krunic and Cacic each dropped a point on their serves, giving the Indo-Americans three match points. Mirza and Ram won thanks to a Cacic blunder on the return of serve.