After years of watching Collingwood's AFL triumphs, Melbourne teenager Jaimee Fourlis hopes she can give her beloved Pies something to cheer about at the Australian Open.
In the shadows of the MCG, the scene of 15 Collingwood grand final wins, Fourlis scored her own piece of sporting history with a 6-4 6-3 first-round win against American Anna Tatishvili in her grand slam debut.
"I think it's just the start of me trying to make a mark in tennis ... hopefully there will be a couple more opportunities," Fourlis said.
"Winning your first match in a grand slam doesn't come every day. At the moment I'm still trying to take it all in. But it's an amazing feeling.
"Hopefully some Collingwood players can come and watch."
Fourlis, ranked 414th in the world, won through to the women's singles draw when she defeated Abbie Myers in December's wildcard playoff.
The 17-year-old served for the first set at 5-1 but was forced to dig deep as the 199th-ranked American fought back.
"I'm pretty happy with how I composed myself, stayed calm, stayed in the present, and was able to finish it off," she said.
"I tried to stay in the moment, tried to keep everything on court. There was nothing to lose ... so I think I kind of just I went out there with an open mind."
Fourlis, who practised for three hours a day while she juggled Year 12 studies last year, faces the toughest task of her fledgling career when she meets Russian No.8 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova in the second round.
"She's an amazing player ... (but) I think I can go in with an open mind and just have a bit of fun with it," she said.
"It's not every day a 17-year-old gets to play in the second round of a slam."
