Rod Laver Arena
Belinda Bencic (SUI)[12] vs. Maria Sharapova (RUS)[5]
Match of the day on the women’s side. The two have never faced one another on the tour before. With a Grand Slam quarterfinal at stake in their first clash, both players will be bringing their A-game in Melbourne Park tomorrow. Maria was allegedly far from her best form approaching the Australian Open, having to retire from the first tournaments played in the season with precarious physical conditions. The Russian has however swiped away all competition she faced in Melbourne, even managing to come back from a set loss against Davis in the third round, by dominating the third set without losing a game. Belinda had to fight for 2 hours to beat Bondarenko in the third round, and hasn’t looked at her best. The Swiss might be the new rising star of women’s tennis, but she seems to struggle against big pure baseline hitters such as Maria Sharapova. In New York she lost in two easy sets against Venus Williams, who has a game style very close to the one the Russian brings every time on court. Maria should be able to use her consistent aggression to win the match in three sets.
Serena Williams (USA)[1] vs. Margarita Gasparyan (RUS)
Serena hasn’t been challenged so far in the tournament and talented one-handed backhand Gasparyan will hardly be able to take a set away from the World No.1. The American should win in straight sets, also considering how she dominated the Russian last year at Wimbledon, in their first ever meeting.
Novak Djokovic (SRB)[1] vs. Gilles Simon (FRA)[14]
The last time Simon has managed to beat Djokovic was the very first time the two met on the tour, 8 years ago in 2008 in Marseille. After that, Novak won 9 matches in a row against the French and the trend is hardly going to be interrupted this Sunday in Melbourne. When the points count, Novak always brings out his very best and wins it all, just as he did against Seppi in the third round managing to avoid a set loss. Djokovic should once again win in straight sets.
Carla Suarez Navarro (ESP)[10] vs. Daria Gavrilova (AUS)
Carla has been helped by the draw to reach this stage of the competition, despite hardly ever playing her best tennis. The young Australian should prove to be playing too well for the Spaniard right now. Gavrilova should be able to pull out the upset in straight sets.
Roger Federer (SUI)[3] vs. David Goffin (BEL)[15]
After winning his 300th match in a Gand Slam, Federer looks set to continue winning at these 2016 Australian Open. The Swiss has performed coming out on top of every tough situation he has faced so far in the draw. The way he dominated both Dolgopolov and Dimitrov has been impressive and I don’t see the talented Belgian being able to win the match. Maybe Goffin will win a set as he did last year in Basel against the Swiss, but hardly something more than that.
Margaret Court Arena
Roberto Bautista Agut (ESP)[24] vs. Tomas Berdych (CZE)[6]
Bautista Agut could have been considered a threat for Berdych, but not after the Czech has dominated Kyrgios the way he did in the previous round. Always consistent, on the attack, Tomas is playing at a very high level this year in Australia. Any player not ranked in the top 5 will have a hard time trying to beat Berdych. Tomas should win in 4 sets.
Hisense Arena
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA)[9] vs. Kei Nishikori (JPN)[7]
Match of the day on the men’s side, surprisingly scheduled on Hisense Arena. Nishikori leads the Head-2-Head against the French by 4-2, but Tsonga has won the last match played in a major last year at the French Open. Considering the level expressed by both players in Australia so far, I believe the French should be able to pull out the upset. After all, the two matches Kei has won in 2013 and 2014 in Bercy were both tight three-set contests which could have ended with any of the two players on the winning side. Jo should use his ability to perform at his best in Australia by winning the match in 4 or 5 sets.
Agnieszka Radwanska (POL)[4] vs. Anna-Lena Friedsam (GER)
Radwanska has been one of the most convincing players so far in the women’s draw. Always winning as the favourite, she has hardly been challenged so far. Big server Friedsam shouldn’t be able to go as far as winning six games in a set losing in the tie-break. A top seed will be needed to beat Aga this year in Melbourne.
