'Never seen that': Australian Open villain accused of 'classless' act

Controversial women's tennis star Dayana Yastremska has sparked uproar at the Australian Open after being accused of a "classless" act during her chastening first round loss.

The Ukrainian is no stranger to scandal and her rollercoaster defeat to American Madison Brengle was no exception.

'UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE': Novak Djokovic cops brutal new blow

'NO WORDS': Jelena Dokic breaks down during Ash Barty interview

The World No.144 bowed out of the year's first grand slam after going down 6-1 0-6 5-0 in what will surely be one of the most bizarre matches at Melbourne Park.

Yastremska's defeat was confounding enough considering the fact she hit 31 winners when compared to Brengle's one.

However, it was the staggering 60 unforced errors that proved the Ukrainian hot-head's undoing.

Yastremska is known to Australian tennis fans after travelling to Melbourne Park last year while on a provisional ban.

The 21-year-old eventually cleared her name over the doping incident but sparked more controversy after taking a medical time out (MTO) at a vital moment in her second round clash against Caty McNally at last year's Southern & Western Open in Cincinnati.

She was also accused of faking an injury by former champion Caroline Wozniacki during the 2018 Australian Open, with Yastremska gaining an unwanted reputation for gamesmanship and flouting medical timeout rules.

On Tuesday in Melbourne, Yastremska appeared to be up to her old tricks again after retiring in the deciding set against Brengle while trailing 5-0.

Tennis Podcast host David Law said the move was widely “frowned upon” by fellow players, with many furious tennis fans pointing out that it's not the first time Yastremska has retired so late in a match - presumably to save herself from the embarrassment of suffering a 'bagel'.

Ash Barty, Sam Stosur through to second round

On Tuesday, veteran Sam Stosur kept her fairytale grand slam singles farewell alive with a thrilling three-set win over American Robin Anderson.

The veteran Aussie stormed back to join compatriot Ash Barty in the second round with a 6-7 6-3 6-3 victory.

Elsewhere, Australia's Daria Saville was bundled out of Melbourne Park after being dispatched in straight sets by Swede Rebecca Peterson.

Playing in her first major since last year's Australian Open and having recovered from surgery to the Achilles tendon that had troubled her on and off for five years, Saville lost 6-2 6-3 in one hour and 21 minutes.

The former top-20 star married fellow Australian player Luke Saville last month.

Saville's best campaigns at Melbourne Park came when she reached the round of 16 in 2016 and 2017.

On Tuesday night, Ajla Tomljanovic's campaign has come to an abrupt end, with the world No.43 suffering a 6-4 6-0 loss to Paula Badosa in the first round.

Five days after losing to Badosa in straight sets at the Sydney Tennis Classic, Tomljanovic fell short in a bruising first set, then was thoroughly outclassed by the world No.8 in a 24-minute second set late on Monday night.

World No.1 Barty cruised past Lesia Tsurenko 6-0 6-1 earlier on Monday evening,

with AAP

Click here to sign up to our newsletter for all the latest and breaking stories from Australia and around the world.