The first Major of 2019, the #AustralianOpen, is ready to take over the entire tennis world in the next fortnight. There are a couple of first-round matches which the fans are already looking forward to, and the fact that 11 women are competing for the world number one ranking is extraordinary.
First Section: Halep handed death draw
World number one and defending finalist #SimonaHalep is on a five-match losing streak, with her last win coming at the Western and Southern Open. Affected by a back injury, the Romanian returned healthy in Sydney last week and put up an encouraging performance despite an opening-round loss. However, just when things seemed to be going well for Halep, she was handed the worst possible draw.
Halep will face her US Open conquerer #KaiaKanepi in the first round yet again, and the Estonian would be looking to inflict another upset on the Romanian, who will look to prevent a second consecutive first-round exit at a Major. #SofiaKenin could await in the second round, and she may give Halep some tough time as well. Kenin won her first WTA singles title in Hobart this week and is one of the game’s best youngsters currently.
There could be an all-Romanian clash in the third round with 25th seed #MihaelaBuzarnescu projected to be Halep’s third-round opponent. However, the lefty will find it difficult to earn her best-ever run in Melbourne, as she drew former finalist #VenusWilliams in the opening round. Buzarnescu has never seemed to be the same player as she was before her scary-looking ankle injury in Cincinnati, while Williams would be motivated to rise in the rankings once again.
23rd seed #CarlaSuarezNavarro opens against French wildcard #ClaraBurel but it is the first-round clash between local favourite #SamanthaStosur and teenage sensation #DayanaYastremska which will steal the limelight. It will be an interesting hard-hitting battle between the veteran and youngster in a clash of generations, while the Ukrainian will be looking to record her best result at the Australian Open this time around.
16th seed #SerenaWilliams, who won the title in 2017 on her last appearance, returns to Melbourne hoping to replicate her success. The American opens against the tricky #TatjanaMaria, who has caused some problems to the top players previously. Williams will face some tough competition along the way, with the winner of a blockbuster first-round meeting between #EugenieBouchard and #PengShuai awaiting in the second round.
Matches to watch: Halep vs Kanepi, Venus vs Buzarnescu, Stosur vs Yastremska, Bouchard vs Peng, Maria vs Serena
Prediction: S.Williams d. Kenin
Second Section: Pliskova leads the way
10th seed #DariaKasatkina will fancy her chances in Melbourne, particularly after a disappointing start to 2019 which saw her go on a two-match losing streak. She opens against #TimeaBacsinszky, who is yet another crafty player, although the Swiss managed to reach the quarterfinals in Sydney this week. A qualifier will await in the second round, with either the resurgent #NataliaVikhlyantseva or former top-20 player #VarvaraLepchenko being a potential opponent.
#JohannaKonta and #AjlaTomljanovic will battle it out in the first round, with the winner potentially playing 18th seed #GarbineMuguruza. It is a cruel draw for them, especially for Konta who reached the semifinals back in 2016. Muguruza is on a poor run recently and needs to get straight to business otherwise an early loss would ensue.
27th seed #CamilaGiorgi opens her Melbourne campaign against #DalilaJakupovic, and qualifier #IgaSwiatek, who is tipped as the successor of Polish tennis, will make her debut in the main draw of a Major. There will be a battle of Karolinas in the first round, with #KarolinaPliskova going up against fellow countrywoman #KarolinaMuchova. Muchova stunned Muguruza at the US Open last year and will be looking to cause the huge upset against her compatriot this time.
Matches to watch: Kasatkina vs Bacsinszky, Konta vs Tomljanovic, Muchova vs Ka.Pliskova
Prediction: Giorgi d. Kasatkina
Third Section: Osaka receives a favourable draw
Fourth seed #NaomiOsaka will be looking for her second consecutive Major title, alongside the number one ranking. She was handed a relatively manageable draw, much easier as compared to her fellow top players. The Japanese opens against #MagdaLinette, although home favourite #DariaGavrilova could await in the second round.
#LauraSiegemund and #VictoriaAzarenka could play out an interesting first-round encounter, considering the extreme contrasts between both players’ playing styles. The winner could face 28th seed #HsiehSuwei in the second round as well. However, Hsieh has to first get past #StefanieVoegele in the opening hurdle.
21st seed #WangQiang, who had an excellent end to 2018, looks to translate her success into the bigger tournaments. Her first-round opponent is youngster #FionaFerro, who skyrocketed up the rankings recently after a series of good runs. There will also be a battle of the future stars, with the in-form #BiancaAndreescu, who reached the final in Auckland, going up against wildcard #WhitneyOsuigwe. 13th seed #AnastasijaSevastova could, however, cause some upsets and provide Osaka with some challenge.
Matches to watch: Siegemund vs Azarenka, Andreescu vs Osuigwe
Prediction: Osaka d. Sevastova
Fourth Section: Svitolina looks to prove her worth
12th seed #EliseMertens, who is defending semifinalist points in Melbourne, has a tricky draw. She opens against the red-hot #AnnaKarolinaSchmiedlova, who is experiencing a resurgence after reaching the final in Hobart this week. A potential second-round opponent could be Russian #MargaritaGasparyan.
Local wildcard #DestaneeAiava could shine on Rod Laver Arena as she was drawn to face 17th seed #MadisonKeys in the first round. This will be Keys’ first tournament of the year hence her game could still be rusty, although she cannot afford a slow start as she is defending quarterfinal points from last year. #AnastasiaPotapova, making her debut in Melbourne, could be a player to watch for in this section.
26th seed and former finalist #DominikaCibulkova opens against #ZhangShuai while there are several youngsters lurking in this section of the draw. #AnnaBlinkova and #ViktoriaKuzmova will look to cause some upsets, but sixth seed #ElinaSvitolina aims to ride on her triumph in Singapore to record her best-ever run in Melbourne. The Ukrainian reached the quarterfinals in 2018.
Matches to watch: Aiava vs Keys
Prediction: Keys d. Svitolina
Fifth Section: Potential Kvitova-Sabalenka clash?
Sydney champion #PetraKvitova looked completely exhausted on the court during the final, but she will be looking for a quick turnaround as the bottom half is scheduled to compete on Day 1 of the tournament. Kvitova faces the crafty #MagdalenaRybarikova in the opening round. #AndreaPetkovic, a former top-10 player, could have a rematch of their 2018 first-round classic with Kvitova, although she needs to first get past #IrinaCameliaBegu.
The main question is: can Kvitova keep her momentum going and have a quick recovery from the physically-demanding Sydney final?
#BelindaBencic, despite being unseeded, is tipped to reach the third round. 32nd seed #BarboraStrycova opens against fellow grinder #YuliaPutintseva, and this could well be a marathon thriller to start the tournament with. 24th seed #LesiaTsurenko, who reached the final in Brisbane, looks to carry her form into Melbourne although she will face a stern test from the hard-hitting #EkaterinaAlexandrova.
Rising star #AmandaAnisimova faces veteran #MonicaNiculescu in an interesting first-round encounter where there is a drastic difference in their playing styles. #EkaterinaMakarova, a two-time semifinalist in Melbourne, goes up against #KatieBoulter while 11th seed #ArynaSabalenka is the favourite to mount a deep run after suffering from a first-round loss last year.
Matches to watch: Bencic vs Siniakova, Niculescu vs Anisimova
Prediction: Kvitova d. Sabalenka
Sixth Section: Sharapova and Wozniacki set for collision
#AshleighBarty is a player to look out for this fortnight. The Australian reached the third round last year, and this time around she will be aiming to record her career-best performance in Melbourne especially when she just reached the final in Sydney this week. Barty is seeded 15th and opens her campaign against the dangerous #LuksikaKumkhum.
#AstraSharma, who shocked top seed Vera Zvonareva in qualifying, will make her debut in the main draw alongside wildcard #EllenPerez. 23rd seed #JelenaOstapenko is currently experiencing an unfortunate slump — going on a four-match losing streak with her last win over a top-30 player coming in June 2018. It seems like her poor run will continue to haunt her, with #MariaSakkari awaiting in the opening round. Sakkari is the overwhelming favourite to cause the “upset”.
2008 champion and 30th seed #MariaSharapova opens her Melbourne campaign against the talented youngster #HarrietDart, who listed the Russian as her childhood idol. The five-time Major champion suffered from some injury scares early in the season but should be able to navigate her way to the third round. Defending champion and world number three #CarolineWozniacki begins her title defence against #AlisonVanUytvanck, but a potential third-round blockbuster clash against Sharapova will await.
Matches to watch: Sakkari vs Ostapenko, Sharapova vs Dart
Prediction: Barty d. Wozniacki
Seventh Section: Opportunities for everyone
Fifth-ranked #SloaneStephens will first face compatriot #TaylorTownsend, but her path to the second week only gets tougher from there. #OnsJabeur, who opens against #TimeaBabos, will look to provide a difficult time for the two-time Major finalist. The Tunisian has the goods and definitely has the capability to string together a surprising run.
31st seed #PetraMartic, who reached the fourth round last year, could face #MarketaVondrousova in the second round. The Croatian will need to produce some of her Melbourne magic from 2018 to recreate her run.
#AnettKontaveit and #AliaksandraSasnovich are set for a collision course in the second round, and the Belarusian reached the quarterfinals in Brisbane, and the last four in Sydney which allowed her to rise in the rankings once more. Kontaveit also had a decent run-up to the Australian Open, and they will be looking to provide us with a thriller.
Olympics Gold Medalist #MonicaPuig will go up against former quarterfinalist #AnastasiaPavlyuchenkova in the opening round, while ninth seed #KikiBertens faces the dangerous #AlisonRiske. This is a cruel draw for all four players, considering the winner of the matches will clash in the second round as well.
Matches to watch: Puig vs Pavlyuchenkova, Riske vs Bertens
Prediction: Bertens d. Jabeur
Eighth Section: Kerber receives friendly draw
14th seed #JuliaGoerges, who hoisted the trophy in Auckland, goes up against #DanielleCollins in a highly-anticipated first-round clash. #CarolineGarcia, who is seeded 19th in the tournament, will be looking to regain some of her form after experiencing a slump since last year’s Asian swing which saw her fail to defend the majority of her points.
#DonnaVekic, who showed a massive improvement in her game recently, faces the struggling #KristinaMladenovic in the first round. It could well be a intriguing first-round clash, although we would need the Frenchwoman to be in decent form for it to be a high-quality encounter. Second seed #AngeliqueKerber received a highly favourable draw, although Vekic could cause some trouble in the third round. The Croatian definitely has the goods to cause the upset.
Matches to watch: Goerges vs Collins, Vekic vs Mladenovic
Prediction: Goerges d. Vekic
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