Zeynep Sönmez made history at the Australian Open today!

The 23-year-old Turkish qualifier, ranked around No. 112, pulled off a stunning upset by defeating No. 11 seed Ekaterina Alexandrova 7-5, 4-6, 6-4 in the first round. This victory marks the first time a Turkish woman has won a main-draw match and advanced to the second round at the Australian Open in the Open Era.It was a dramatic three-set battle lasting over 2.5 hours, with momentum swinging back and forth:
  • Sönmez came back from 5-2 down to take the first set.
  • Alexandrova leveled it in the second.
  • Sönmez rallied from 3-0 down in the decider to seal the win on her fourth match point.
Beyond the tennis, Sönmez won hearts by immediately stopping play and rushing to help a ball kid who fainted (likely due to the heat) near the umpire's chair during the second set. She helped the ball kid to a chair and waited until medical staff took over — a classy, instinctive act of sportsmanship that drew widespread praise.The official Australian Open post you're linking to celebrates this big moment for Turkish tennis, highlighting her impressive performance and that touching gesture (the attached video likely shows key highlights from the match and/or the ball kid incident).Huge congrats to Zeynep — what a way to kick off her 2026 Australian Open campaign! She's now through to round 2 and has already delivered one of the tournament's biggest stories. 🇹🇷 🎾