Dokic, Dementieva crash out

Jelena Dokic's [Images] return to the Australian Open ended in disappointment on Monday when she was knocked out in the opening round by Virginie Razzano 3-6, 7-6, 6-1.

Dokic, back in Australia after five years of self-imposed exile, squandered two match points in the second set before Razzano gained control of the deciding third set.

Dokic thought she had won the match on her first match point when she fired a forehand past Razzano, only for the ball to be called out.

Dokic disputed the call with the chair umpire then almost lost her cool when she wasted a second match point immediately after, slapping a return into the net.

Dokic's early exit continued a frustrating run of bad luck at Melbourne Park for the former world number four, who grew up in Australia but has only just returned to her adopted homeland.

Dokic left Australia in a huff five years ago, threatening never to return, after her father Damir said the 2001 Australian Open draw was rigged against her.

However, she announced last month that she wanted to return home, saying she had never wanted to leave Australia in the first place but that her father insisted on moving the family to Serbia-Montenegro.

World number nine Elena Dementieva was the first seeded player to crash out of the Australian Open, losing 7-5, 6-2 in the first round to Germany's [Images] Julia Schruff.

Dementieva, a former French and US Open finalist, struggled from the outset and was quickly down 5-1 in the first set against the 23-year-old unranked German.

"I think I served really good in the first set, and I tried to play a lot of dropshots," said Schruff.

The ninth-seeded Russian fought back to 5-5 but lost the next two games to give Schruff the first set.

The 24-year-old Dementieva took a 10-minute break between sets but that failed to unsettle Schruff, who raced out to a 4-0 lead in the second set.

The German, playing in her first match at the Australian Open, closed out the tie after Dementieva hit a forehand into the net.

Schruff, whose best result at a Grand Slam was reaching the third round of last year's US Open, said the victory was one of the biggest of her career.

"I won also against Myskina in Berlin," Schruff said. "But I'm really happy to win against Dementieva also."

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