Doubles queen Storm Hunter has paid a heartfelt tribute to her trusted inner circle after continuing her stunning rise to prominence with a long-awaited maiden Australian Open main-draw singles win.
Australia's world No.1 doubles star built on her momentum from qualifying with a 6-4 6-3 first-round victory over former French Open finalist Sara Errani on Monday.
Incredibly, the watershed win comes in her 10th Open campaign since debuting at Melbourne Park in 2012 as a teenager.
The 29-year-old has been handed wildcards for every one of her previous nine tilts, including main-draw first-round defeats in 2014, 2015, 2016, 2022 and 2023.
Hunter's only other Open win was in qualifying four years ago.
"It means everything," she said after finally breaking through.
"I grew up watching the Australian Open and then dreaming of playing here and then I've had a lot of opportunities.
"I'm a little bit older, so I've played a few main draws and never got the win.
"So to come through qualifying and to win my first round and kind of waiting for it, it's insane."
Pinching herself, Hunter never imagined while growing up as a six-year-old at Grand Hotel in Rockhampton as her folks struggled to make ends meet that she'd be winning matches on the grand slam stage.
"I grew up in a pub in Rockhampton. My grandparents used to own that and then we lived upstairs. My parents had no money," Hunter said.
"They were hard workers. They knew I had this dream, and they joined the military to try and give us a better life and a better opportunity.
"Then we relocated to WA. I spent a lot of times in my childhood not seeing my parents because they were sacrificing their time with me and my brother to give us that support.
"I kind of feel like I owe it to them. They've always been so supportive of my career and I think believed in me more than I ever believed in myself."
As well as becoming Australia's first top-ranked women's doubles ace since Samantha Stosur in 2006, Hunter has emerged as a linchpin for the nation's Billie Jean King Cup and United Cup teams over the past two years.
"I've got a big schedule now," Hunter said.
"Singles, doubles and mixed, so bring it on."
Hunter is especially proud to be the first Australian woman to progress to the women's second round having not been given the leg-up of a wildcard.
"The priority was qualifying and playing there. It definitely feels amazing to do it on my own," she said after booking a date with fellow doubles specialist Laura Siegemund on Wednesday.
But the crafty southpaw said she also couldn't have done it without her omnipresent coach Nicole Pratt.
"She was the one who actually got me a scholarship to move from WA to Victoria with the AIS program at the time," Hunter said.
"She saw me practising in Perth and was, like, 'This girl is good. I like how she works. She's working hard'.
"She really backed me in. I'm so lucky to have her still in my tennis career. She's basically like family to me."
