Kim Birrell Claims Maiden US Open Victory After Match Point Drama
Kim Birrell walked back onto Court 7 in New York carrying more than just a racquet. She brought with her a restless night, a 14-hour rain delay, a match point saved, and three years of first‑round frustration at Flushing Meadows.
She left with her first US Open main-draw victory.
The 28-year-old Queenslander dug herself out of a deep hole to wear down Croatian Petra Marcinko 3-6, 7-6 (7-4), 6-3, finally snapping her opening-round hoodoo at the season’s final major after losses in 2023, 2024 and 2025.
From rain delay to escape act
On Sunday night, Birrell looked in serious trouble. Marcinko had taken the first set and tightened the screws in the second, earning a match point in the 12th game. Birrell survived it, clung to the set, but still trailed by a mini-break in the tiebreak.
Then the rain came.
Play was suspended, nerves stretched, and the Australian was left to stew overnight with the knowledge she was a handful of points from another early exit.
When they returned on Monday (Tuesday AEST), the match – and Birrell’s mood – shifted. The tension of the previous evening gave way to a more stubborn, grounded version of her game. She clawed back the tiebreak, snatched the second set, and from there her belief grew while Marcinko’s resistance slowly frayed.
By the third set, it was Birrell dictating the rallies, turning defence into attack, making the Croatian hit one extra ball, then another. The pressure finally told. A player who had never been past the first round here suddenly looked like she belonged in week one – and wanted more.
History, revenge and a big reward
This was no routine upset. Marcinko had beaten Birrell in straight sets on the grass of Eastbourne just two months ago, having dished out a 6-0 opening set in their very first meeting in Texas back in February, a match Birrell eventually turned around to win.
New York delivered another reversal.
This time, the Australian’s resilience earned her more than just payback. The win locks in a second-round showdown with world No.19 Ekaterina Alexandrova and guarantees Birrell a $US190,000 ($265,000) payday, with the chance to significantly boost both her ranking and bank balance if she can back it up on Wednesday (Thursday AEST).
It is the kind of breakthrough that can reframe a season. For a player who has had to grind through qualifying draws and early exits, finally cracking the code at Flushing Meadows feels like a door swinging open.
Mixed fortunes for the Aussies
While Birrell found a way through her rain-interrupted scrap, Aleksandar Vukic could not do the same.
Resuming deep in the fifth set against Rei Sakamoto after their own weather delay, Vukic started the day a break down and never managed to claw it back. The Japanese player held firm, rattling through six straight points on serve without conceding any to close out a gruelling 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 victory.
So the Australian tally stands at one win, one loss from the weather-hit opening exchanges – with plenty more to come.
Taylah Preston had already set the tone by moving through earlier, and now Birrell has joined her. Next, the baton passes to a sizeable day-two contingent.
Alexei Popyrin faces a marquee test against former US Open semifinalist Grigor Dimitrov, who has been forced to come through qualifying this year after an injury lay-off. Rinky Hijikata runs into third seed Felix Auger-Aliassime, a draw that offers danger and opportunity in equal measure.
James Duckworth meets Italian Matteo Arnaldi, while Maya Joint steps into one of the toughest assignments of the round against the highly rated Liudmila Samsonova.
And looming over all of it is the start of Alex de Minaur’s campaign. The world No.7 opens his title quest on Tuesday (Wednesday AEST) against Italian qualifier Andrea Guerrieri, carrying the weight of Australian expectation on his shoulders.
For now, though, the story belongs to Birrell. Three years of first-round exits, one match point stared down, a long, wet New York night, and finally a win that might just change the way she walks into Grand Slams from here.
