Louk Sorensen has become the first Irish player to win a Grand Slam match after defeating Yen-Hsun Lu 6-4, 3-6, 6-2, 6-1 at the Australian Open on Tuesday.

Just by qualifying for the event, Sorensen guaranteed Ireland its first main draw appearance in a major since 1985. The country even came close to having two players in the main draw, with Conor Niland also reaching the final round of qualifying.

Louk's father, Matt Sorensen, played Wimbledon in 1977 and is currently the Irish Davis Cup captain.

Turkey, another nation with little notable tennis history, has marked a maiden victory at the Australian Open with Marsel Ilhan's 6-4, 6-3, 7-5 win over Sebastien Grosjean. Ilhan recorded Turkey's first Grand Slam match win in history at the U.S. Open last year.