Sania loses first round

Sania Mirza crashed out of the singles event of the Australian Open after suffering a straight-set defeat in the first round at the hands 26th seed Aravane Rezai of France.

The unseeded Indian lost her opening round 4-6 2-6 in one hour and nine minutes to her world number 27 opponent at Melbourne Park.

The first set could have gone either way with both the players getting an equal number of opportunities to break serve.

However, Sania missed all the four breakpoints while the French rode on one break to shoot into the lead.

In the second set, Sania got four chances to break her rival but could convert just one while she dropped her serve thrice.