James Duckworth watched Jannik Sinner’s first serve sail long and wide for a fault.

After losing the opening set 1-6 in a breezy 26 minutes, this was Duckworth’s first – and maybe only – chance to break the superstar Italian’s serve, in the second game of the next set.

There is an urgency when these opportunities arise against the game’s elite.

Jannik Sinner gunning for a third-straight Australian Open crown.Credit: AP

Sinner went to the Australian’s backhand again on his second serve, and Duckworth’s eyes lit up. He knew pre-match he would need to be aggressive. Unfortunately, the 34-year-old’s crosscourt backhand return landed narrowly wide.

“I went after it, and missed by six inches or so,” Duckworth said after his 1-6, 4-6, 2-6 defeat to Sinner on Rod Laver Arena on Thursday night.

“I wouldn’t change my approach to it, but my execution could have been slightly better.”

That proved Duckworth’s big chance. He did not generate another break point until Sinner was already two sets up, and armed with a double-break advantage in the third set.

Sinner on the stretch in his first-round win over Hugo Gaston.Credit: Chris Hopkins

In a sport of microscopic margins, there is even less room for error against an........

© The Sydney Morning Herald