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Murray-Wawrinka, Raonic-Djokovic are potential semi-final matches.

Andy Murray could have a tricky path to becoming the last man standing in Melbourne, while Novak Djokovic has an equally treacherous road in pursuit of a seventh Australian Open crown.
Top seed Murray opens up his quest for his first Australian Open title against Illya Marchenko, with the Brit winning their lone meeting at the 2011 edition of this tournament. Looking ahead, Murray could face No. 16 seed Lucas Pouille in the fourth round and either No. 5 seed Kei Nishikori or No. 17 seed Roger Federer in the quarter-finals.

Second seed Djokovic was given a very tricky first-round against veteran Fernando Verdasco. The Serbian leads their FedEx ATP Head2Head rivalry 9-4, including a third-round victory in the 2015 edition of this tournament. However, he was forced to save five match points in prevailing over Verdasco earlier this month in the semi-finals in Doha. The Spaniard is also more than capable of upsetting big names in early rounds, as evidenced by his first-round win last year in Melbourne over Rafael Nadal.
Should Djokovic advance, he could play No. 15 seed and recent Brisbane champion Grigor Dimitrov in the fourth round, followed by eighth seed Dominic Thiem in the quarter-finals.
Federer was given a comparatively kind opener in his first sanctioned tournament since Wimbledon, with the Swiss maestro guaranteed to play a qualifier in his first two rounds. His path gets significantly harder afterwards, though, with potential matches against No. 10 seed Tomas Berdych in the third round, Nishikori in the fourth round and Murray in the quarter-finals.

Ninth seed Nadal starts out his campaign Down Under against Florian Mayer. A mouth-watering third-round clash against No. 24 seed and #NextGenATP star Alexander Zverev looms ahead, while an equally entertaining fourth-round clash against sixth seed Gael Monfils is also on the cards.
Third seed Milos Raonic will need to be on his game from the first ball when he plays the always-flashy Dustin Brown in his first match. No. 13 seed and recent Chennai champion Roberto Bautista Agut is a likely fourth-round matchup, followed by a potential quarter-final clash against Monfils.
Fourth seed Stan Wawrinka kicks off his search for a second Australian Open crown against Martin Klizan. The 2014 champion is on course to face No. 14 seed Nick Kyrgios in the fourth round and seventh seed Marin Cilic in the last eight.

Another notable first-round match includes the return of former World No. 2 Tommy Haas, who will square off against Benoit Paire. The German is competing in his first tournament since Vienna in October 2015.

Wildcard Thanasi Kokkinakis withdrew from the men’s singles draw due to injury. His spot will be filled by a lucky loser from the qualifying draw.

Six titles offer no protection

With six titles apiece, Serena Williams and Novak Djokovic are the most prolific Australian Open champions of the current era. But neither player was given any favours in this year’s draw. Serena’s first-round match pits her against 19-year-old Swiss Belinda Bencic, who upset the world No.2 as she surged to her biggest career title at the Canadian Open in 2015. Lucie Safarova, runner-up at the French Open in 2015, could be next for Serena, and former No.1 Caroline Wozniacki sits in the same quarter. The path might be even tougher for Djokovic, who opens his 13th Melbourne Park campaign against Fernando Verdasco. The Serb leads the pair’s head-to-head record 9-4, but Djokovic needed to save five match points as he battled past the 33-year-old in their Doha semifinals two weeks ago. Adding to Djokovic’s challenge is that Melbourne is a favourite stop for Verdasco, a semifinalist in 2009 and an upset winner over Rafael Nadal in the first round last year.

AO draw: Dream start for Fed, tough for Serena



It’s dangerous outside the top four

Kei Nishikori will be ruing the fact he lost his top-four ranking at the end of last year. As the No.5 seed at this Australian Open, the Japanese star sits in the same quarter as Andy Murray, Tomas Berdych and Roger Federer. Stan Wawrinka, the No.4 seed, has a statistically less-challenging path, with No.7 seed Marin Cilic the most dangerous opponent in his quarter. There’s similar security (at least statistically) for the No.4 seed Simona Halep in the women’s draw – No.8 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova is the highest-ranked opponent that Halep can meet until the semifinals. For No.5 seed Karolina Pliskova, the recent Brisbane champion, there’s a potential quarterfinal against No.3 seed Agnieszka Radwanska (although the Pole faces a tricky opener against 2014 Sydney champion and former Wimbledon semifinalist Tsvetana Pironkova). Dominika Cibulkova, the No.6 seed and Australian Open runner-up in 2014, has a far tougher path with Caroline Wozniacki, Johanna Konta and Serena Williams all sitting in her quarter.

Analysis: Novak needs to be switched on early

Fate can play a part

Contesting his first Tour matches since he exited to Milos Raonic in a five-set semifinal at Wimbledon last July, there’ll be no easy matches for Roger Federer in his 18th Australian Open run. Still, there must have been some relief as he was drawn to face a qualifier in the first round. And waiting in the second? Another qualifier. That path could help the four-time Australian Open champion find his rhythm and build confidence before potential meetings with Tomas Berdych (No.10 seed), Kei Nishikori (No.5) and Andy Murray (No.1) in later rounds. Crowd favourite Rafael Nadal, who was stunned by Verdasco in the first round last year, sits on the opposite side of the draw. Should the draw progress according to seedings, Nadal’s first test against a higher-ranked opponent would be a fourth-round meeting with No.3 seed Milos Raonic.

Analysis: A spur for Serena



Generations are overlapping

Grand Slam draws will always feature players nearing the end of their careers and others who are just starting out, but it seems a little more pronounced at this Australian Open. Consider that there are 16 years separating Serena Williams (at age 35) and Belinda Bencic (19) in their must-watch first round. Sister Venus, aged 36, first faces an opponent who is 14 years younger in Kateryna Kozlova. There’s also a fascinating blend of youth and experience in first-round men’s matches with 19-year-old local hope Omar Jasika up against 34-year-old veteran David Ferrer. A decade sits between fast-rising 19-year-old Alexander Zverev and Dutchman Robin Haase. Similarly, exciting American teenager Taylor Fritz, faces another veteran in Gilles Muller, also aged 34. We’ve become accustomed to seemingly ageless superstars, but they’ll face tough opposition from some talented young contenders – including Melbourne teenager Destanee Aiava, the first player born this century to compete in a Grand Slam main draw.

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Aussies are circling

Any home Grand Slam advantage is often cancelled out by the enormous pressure placed on the Aussies, but with four seeded locals at Melbourne Park, a strong run from a crowd favourite becomes more likely. Nick Kyrgios, who at No.14 is the highest Australian seed, first meets Gastao Elias and could encounter compatriot Bernard Tomic, the No.27 seed, in the same quarter. Also lurking in that section, though, is 2014 champion and the No.4 seed Stan Wawrinka. Other Australian men hoping to make a mark in Melbourne include Alex De Minaur, James Duckworth, Sam Groth, Omar Jasika, Jordan Thompson, Andrew Whittington and Christopher O’Connell. The two local women’s seeds Sam Stosur (No.18) and Daria Gavrilova (No.22) also sit in the same quarter – and interestingly, both open their tournament against British opponents, in Heather Watson and Naomi Broady respectively. Gavrilova would need to progress past Karolina Pliskova (among other opponents) for an all-Australian quarterfinal to eventuate between the pair. Arina Rodionova, Lizette Cabrera, Ashleigh Barty, Destanee Aiava and Jaimee Fourliss are the other Australian women who’ll look to provide something special for the locals to cheer on.