Reilly Opelka defeated Australia’s Dane Sweeny in the first round of the Brisbane International 2026. The two have a massive height difference of sixteen inches between them. Opelka is reportedly 6-foot-11 while Sweeny measures 5-foot-7.
When Opelka won the match point with his heavy serve resulting in a no return, he came near to the net for the customary handshake. This is when Sweeny did something completely unexpected. He grabbed a chair and placed it near the net on his side of the court. Then, he stood up on it and shared a warm handshake and brief embrace with Opelka. The crowd loved the gesture and celebrated it with warm applause.
In the post-match conference, the Australian star shared that he told his friends before the match that he would “do the Dudi Sela,” a reference to a famous 2014 moment when Dudi Sela similarly used a chair to greet 6-foot-10 giant Ivo Karlovic.
“I’m just trying to not be overly serious with my tennis,” Sweeny told ATPTour.com. “And I told the boys, my friends, that at the end of the match, I would do the Dudi Sela. Dudi Sela did it to Karlovic a while ago. So I thought that was pretty iconic and he’s 16 inches taller and I thought it’d be pretty funny.”
“I think it’s emblematic of the mindset I’m trying to take into this year,” Sweeny added. “I’m just trying to have fun with it as a whole.”
Reilly Opelka To Next Face Kamil Majchrzak in Brisbane
Reilly Opelka will face Kamil Majchrzak in the round of 16 of the ATP 250 Brisbane event on Wednesday. As per the predictions and odds, the match is nearly a toss-up.
Last season in this tournament, Opelka made a major upset by defeating 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic in straight sets to reach the semifinals. However, in the finals against Jiri Lehecka, he was forced to retire due to injury. His other win against a top-10 opponent came against Alex de Minaur in Cincinnati.
Opelka’s major weapon is his serve and the massive frame, because of which he gets a nice jump on the ball. The hard court surface can prove to be beneficial for him.
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