Minutes later, Basavareddy completed a 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (11) win—after Ofner had two match-point chances—and the 20-year-old American did an apparent choking gesture at the net with both hands on his neck.
“I saw him tense up a little bit,” Basavareddy said of Ofner’s reaction to the score mishap, adding “generally when that happens, you start overthinking like, ‘Oh, I thought I already won the match, through to the next round.’ So, yeah, that definitely gave me a little bit of hope.”
Basavareddy now faces George Loffhagen of Britain for a place in the main draw first round—where the American took the first set off Novak Djokovic one year ago.
The 131st-ranked Ofner has never won a main-draw match at the Australian Open, though he reached the fourth round at Roland Garros in 2023.
