 Mackin's off-season training paid off against Sanguinetti |
Britons Alan Mackin, Jonny Marray, Anne Keothavong and Katie O'Brien all reached the second round of qualifying for the Australian Open in Melbourne. Mackin's victory was the most impressive, the world number 270 upsetting top seed Davide Sanguinetti.
The 25-year-old spent the off-season in Florida with renowned trainer Pat Etcheberry, who has also worked with Pete Sampras and Jim Courier.
Alex Bogdanovic fell at the first hurdle, beaten by George Bastl.
Bogdanovic, the British number three, was seeded 10th.
Jamie Baker, Richard Bloomfield and Melanie South also went out in the first round.
Marray defeated Brazil's Andre Ghem 6-3 7-6, while Keothavong got past Junri Namigata of Japan 6-4 6-4 and O'Brien was leading Yanchong Chen 3-6 6-2 8-7 when her Chinese opponent retired with severe cramp.
Players must win three matches to qualify for the main draw of the Australian Open, which begins on Monday.
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