"No one's really experienced this before, right? he said. So waking up, yeah, I didn't really know what to expect. Smith was standing just outside Rod Laver Arena, the scene where 13 hours earlier he had lived the ultimate amateur sporting dream. AFL icon Bailey Smith was his first scalp, after a solid serve forced an error on the Geelong footballer's return."
"Next was Laura Pigossi, the world No 86 who he ousted in a tight rally. Round three brought Jannik Sinner, the two-time defending Australian Open champion, who froze against Smith and faulted. The Australian put his hands on his head in disbelief, running towards the net with his now-trademark grin. The tale was only to get taller. Australian amateur tennis player, Jordan Smith, celebrates a victory during the One Point Slam exhibition event at Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne. Photograph: David Gray/AFP/Getty Images"
"The 29-year-old regularly works 50 hours a week at his parents' tennis academy in the Sydney suburb of Castle Hill, and once chased a future on the professional tour. He is now best known around the courts of Sydney's Hills District as the smiling assassin, a name given to Smith by Mr O'Hara, his year seven teacher at Oak Hill College in Castle Hill."
Jordan Smith, a 29-year-old tennis coach from Sydney, won the $1 million One Point Slam after beating several top professionals. The victory drew intense media attention at Melbourne Park, with interviews, selfies, promotions and autographs following overnight. Smith slept less than three hours and had not eaten before facing the attention, and he described uncertainty upon waking. His run included wins over AFL icon Bailey Smith, world No 86 Laura Pigossi and two-time defending Australian Open champion Jannik Sinner. Smith works long hours at his parents' Castle Hill tennis academy and is nicknamed the "smiling assassin."
Read at www.theguardian.com
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