Tis the season for meltdowns from former top players. A night after Sam Stosur lost the unlosable at the Brisbane International, Victoria Azarenka gave up a set and two match points to fall at the first hurdle of her comeback.
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The twice Australian Open champion (2012, 2013) and ex-world number one looked in control of her opening round match against big-serving Czech Karolina Pliskova, taking the first set 6-4 and having a pair of match points in the second.
Instead, Pliskova, ranked 23 in the world, dug in for the fight to prevail 4-6 7-6 (9-7) 6-4 and leave Azarenka destined to be unseeded in Melbourne, ensuring a difficult start to the summer for a player trying to once again breathe the rarefied air at the top of the women's game.
If the US-based Belarusian was looking for some positives to take out of her brief stay in Brisbane, at least she spent some time on the court. The pair slugged it out for three hours and 13 minutes in predictably draining conditions on Pat Rafter Arena.
But nine double faults, 44 unforced errors and a conversion rate of just four from 16 break point attempts says the 25-year-old needs more matches under her belt to be a genuine force in the first grand slam of the year.
Azarenka was one of a number of big names to tumble on Monday in Brisbane, with the seeded trio of Jelena Jankovic, Dominika Cibulkova and Andrea Petkovic all failing to reach the second round.
And on Sunday night, Stosur struggled once again in her home town event, inexplicably managing to lose to Varvara Lepchenko despite leading 5-1 in the third set and holding a match point.
Brisbane represented the first step back into competitive tennis for Azarenka, who hadn't played since last September when she bowed out in the second round of a tournament in Tokyo.
It ended a forgettable year in which she played just 24 matches and made one final as she struggled to overcome a painful array of foot and knee injuries.
She also endured a difficult break-up with singer Stefan Gordy (Redfoo), who had been a constant face by her side during her pair of Australian Open triumphs.
Azarenka slipped to 31 in the world in her absence from competition but started this tournament ranked 42. She made the final here last year, losing to Serena Williams, and would have needed to do that again if she was to have any chance of a seeding.
Now she may choose to head to Sydney to get more court time before trying to negotiate what is likely to be a testing draw at Melbourne Park.
Victory for Pliskova sets up a second round meeting with Russia's Alla Kudryavtseva, who defeated American Bethanie Mattek-Sanks 6-4 6-2 to start her campaign.
