On Friday the 2015 Australian Open men’s and women’s singles draws were released and while the qualifiers will not be added to the draw till Sunday here are some initial takeaways.
The Early Rounds
Caroline Wozniacki pulled the short straw when it comes to her early round matches. She takes on young hard-hitting Taylor Townsend in the first round and then will face either Victoria Azarenka who is unseeded because of injury or Sloane Stephens. If Azarenka is in decent form she should be able to beat Sloane Stephens who has been in a slump.
The big first round match on the men’s side of the Australian Open is Juan Martin Del Potro versus Jerzy Janowicz. Del Potro has looked solid in his matches leading up to Australian Open, though he still does not yet look comfortable hitting his two-handed backhand. Janowicz is not the worst possible opponent that Del Potro could have drawn but he certainly is not the easiest. Del Potro had no problems holding serve in Sydney but struggled with his return game. He will have to get into more return games at the Australian Open if he wants to make a deep run. If Del Potro is able to win his first round match we could possibly see a very fun second round match against Gael Monfilis.
A men’s first round match up that might fly under most people’s radar but is worth paying attention to is Denis Istomin vs. Andreas Seppi. They have played each other four times in the opening rounds of a Grand Slam, all of which have gone to five sets. They have split those four matches with the last one coming at the 2013 U.S. Open.
Another women’s first round matchup to pay attention to is last year’s Australian Open runner-up Dominika Cibulkova against 2013 Wimbledon semi-finalist Kirsten Flipkens. Cibulkova won their only meeting at a major in the second round of the 2009 French Open. While Cibulkova should be favored to win this match Flipkens will make her work for every point.
Other Notable Men’s First Round Matches: Grigor Dimitrov vs. Dustin Brown, Dominic Thiem vs. Roberto Bautista Agut, and Nicolas Almagro vs. Kei Nishikori
Other Notable Women’s First Round Matches: Madison Brengle vs. Andrea Petkovic, Flavia Pennetta vs. Camila Giorgi, and Salvia Soler-Espinosa vs. Annika Beck
Looking Ahead to the Second Week
In the fourth round on the men’s side it is very possible we could see a rematch of last year’s Wimbledon final between Andy Murray and Grigor Dimitrov. While Murray leads the head to head 4-2, Dimitrov thumped Murray in straight sets in their only Grand Slam meeting. Dimitrov has proven himself to be a top ten player and a threat to the big four. Murray’s results have been inconsistent of late, so it wouldn’t be shocking to see him get upset in the fourth round.
In the fourth round of the women’s draw Angelique Kerber is capable of beating Eugenie Bouchard. Kerber has looked strong early this season making it to the quarterfinals of Brisbane and semi-finals of Sydney. Bouchard won both of their matches last year but that was on grass and clay. Kerber will have a better chance against Bouchard on Melbourne’s hard courts. Bouchard has been inconsistent as of late. Either way it should be a good match if it materializes.
If the seeds hold true for the men in the quarterfinals and Stan Warwinka plays Kei Nishikori it is very likely that Nishikori comes out with the win. While Warwinka has more matches under his belt, Nishikori has a game that thrives on hard court. Also unlike the quarterfinals of last year’s U.S. Open it shouldn’t take Nishikori five sets.
Venus Williams has looked very solid early this year. She has a tough draw that includes Petra Kvitova and Agieszka Radwanska but if she is able to make it to the semi-finals she would face her sister Serena Williams for the first time in a Grand Slam since 2009. It might not be the most likely scenario but we have learned that Venus Williams is still able to upset almost any player. The weather in Melbourne looks like it is going to be decent which will likely favor Venus Williams. The last time Venus and Serena Williams played each other in the Australian Open was the 2003 tournament final.
The draws’ release signifies the intriguing storylines for the 2015 Australian Open are just beginning to build along with the excitement.
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