US Open 2015: Matt Ebden exits tournament after first-round defeat against Grigor Dimitrov

Grigor Dimitrov progressed to the second round of the US Open after defeating qualifier Matthew Ebden in straight sets on Tuesday. Dimitrov’s comfortable win over Ebden earned the Bulgarian tennis pro a spot in the last 64 of the tournament.

World No. 8 Dimitrov needed one hour and 28 minutes to dispatch Ebden in straight sets, coming through by a of 6-4 6-2 6-4 score. The 17th seed Bulgarian has booked a second-round face off with Kazakhstan’s Mikhail Kukushkin, who finished off Taiwanese tennis pro Lu Yen-hsun in three sets, 6-3 6-3 3-0.

Ebden, a big underdog against Dimitrov, qualified for the main draw at Flushing Meadows after defeating British tennis player Brydan Klein, but the Aussie was no match for the former Wimbledon semi-finalist, who took control of the game from the opening set.

“You always want to do better, but in a way I’m on a good path for this year,” Ebden said, reports Fox Sports. “The main thing today was he served a lot better than I did. Everything flows from there.”

Ebden was not the only Australian who suffered a horrific day one in the US Open. The 27-year-old Ebden was also joined by Casey Dellacqua, John Millman, and Daria Gavrilova in the first-round exit of the tennis event.

Dellacqua was unable to duplicate her impressive run to the fourth round last year after being defeated by Estonian qualifier Anett Kontaveit, 7-5 6-2 in the women’s singles category. The 30-year-old Dellacqua said she did not play her best against a tough and young opponent who was full of confidence heading into their match.

"I didn't take any of last year's results into today's match. Every tournament you play is a new tournament," Dellacqua said, reports ABC. Millman also bowed down in the first round against Ukraine's Sergiy Stakhovsky, 6-3 3-6 7-6 (4), while Gavrilova was dismissed by Daria Kasatkina of Russia in three set, 6-2 4-6 7-5.

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