A year after this event was delayed until February due to the pandemic, the Australian Open is back on schedule in 2022. While Serena Williams, Roger Federer, and Novak Djokovic will not be present, top names like Rafael Nadal, Naomi Osaka, Ash Barty, and Daniil Medvedev are all playing.
The men’s singles draw only includes four Major singles champions (Nadal, Murray, Cilic, Medvedev). Will this be the second straight Slam where a new Grand Slam champion is crowned? Following the deportation of Djokovic, reigning US Open champion Daniil Medvedev is now the favorite. But how will he react to that pressure? And recent Slam finalists like Sascha Zverev, Stefanos Tsitsipas, and Matteo Berrettini are eager to take advantage of this opportunity.
The women’s singles draw features 14 Major singles champions. As the trend has been for many years, the last nine Slams have been won by eight different women. Will someone such as Barty or Osaka assert their Major prowess, or will another new name prevail? And how will Emma Raducanu and Leylah Fernandez perform after their electrifying runs at the US Open?
Monday’s schedule sees three of 2021’s most improved Americans taking on top ATP names: Nadal, Berrettini, and Norrie. WTA action includes the 2020 champion taking on a title winner from just 48 hours earlier, while another of Saturday’s champs faces the No.2 Australian. And defending champion Osaka, as well as top-seeded Barty, will also play their opening matches.
Each day this preview will highlight the five most intriguing matchups, while outlining the other notable matches on the schedule. Monday’s play will begin at 11:00am local time.
Matteo Berrettini (7) vs. Brandon Nakashima – Second on Margaret Court Arena
With Djokovic removed from the draw, Berrettini is now the highest seed in his quarter. Six months after reaching his first Major final, Berrettini is seeking put last year’s Australian Open disappointment behind him, when he was forced to withdraw from his fourth round match against Stefanos Tsitsipas due to an abdominal injury. Injuries have unfortunately been a recurring theme in Matteo’s career. Just two months ago at the ATP Finals, the Italian was heartbroken when an oblique injury knocked him out of the event’s debut in his home country. In his return from injury at this month’s ATP Cup, Berrettini went only 1-2, though he did push Medvedev to three sets in a high-quality affair. Nakashima is a 20-year-old American who won two Challenger titles last season, and reached back-to-back hard court ATP finals in July. Brandon earned six top 40 victories in the second half of 2021. He can definitely test the Italian No.1, but he cannot match Berrettini’s fire power, which should enable Matteo to dictate his fate.
Cam Norrie (12) vs. Sebastian Korda – Third on Kia Arena
Kia Arena is a new 5,000-seat on the grounds of Melbourne Park, and is now the tournament’s fourth-largest venue. Norrie had a tremendous 2021, going 52-25 with two titles, including his first Masters 1000 title at Indian Wells. However, he’s currently on a four-match losing streak, and went 0-3 two weeks ago in the ATP Cup. Meanwhile, Korda rose 80 spots in the rankings last season, finishing inside the top 40. The now-21-year-old claimed his first ATP title in Parma, and was the runner-up of the ATP Next Gen Finals. Last January, in the Delray Beach semifinals, Korda defeated Norrie 6-3, 7-5. Sebi is yet to compete in 2022, as he tested positive for COVID upon arriving in Australia. With neither player currently possessing a considerable amount of momentum, 12th-seeded Norrie is the favorite to advance based on his recent success and significant edge in experience.
Rafael Nadal (6) vs. Marcos Giron – Not Before 4:00pm on Rod Laver Arena
As Gaspar Ribeiro Lanca highlighted on Twitter, this will be the first Major of Nadal’s long career without both Federer and Djokovic in the draw. But Rafa does not arrive with much match play, which is usually crucial to his chances at a Slam. This will only be Nadal’s fourth match since the first week of August. He only required three wins to prevail at a lead-up event two weeks ago in Melbourne, his first tournament since undergoing a procedure to address a lingering foot injury. Overall Rafa was 24-5 in 2021. At this event a year ago, he let a two-set lead slip in the quarterfinals against Stefanos Tsitsipas. Giron is a 28-year-old American who achieved a career-high ranking of No.56 this past October. Between June and October, he reached four ATP quarterfinals. However, upending a player as formidable as the 20-time Major champ is a feat Marcos is yet to achieve. But he should offer enough to resistance to reveal just how ready Nadal’s body is for this Major, in his first best-of-five match since June.
Sofia Kenin (11) vs. Madison Keys – Not Before 5:00pm on John Cain Arena
Last week was huge for the career of Madison Keys. After going 11-15 last season, she gained her first title since 2019 by becoming the champion in Adelaide. Similarly, Kenin also had a rough 2021, and is hoping to rediscover the form that made her 2020’s WTA Player of the Year by bringing her father back as her coach, just six months after he left her team. Kenin has a 2-2 record thus far in 2022. These Americans played three times in 2019, with Keys taking both of their hard court matchups. Based on that history, and their current form, Madison should be favored to eliminate the 2020 champion.
Paula Badosa (8) vs. Ajla Tomljanovic – Last on Margaret Court Arena
On Saturday in the Sydney final, Badosa overcame Barbora Krejickova in a third-set tiebreak after a dogged fight by both players. The Indian Wells champ has now won 13 of her last 16 matches. Tomljanovic advanced to her first Major quarterfinal six months ago at The Championships, but has lost almost as many matches as she’s won since that time. And just this past Wednesday in Sydney, she was defeated by Badosa in their first meeting. Assuming Paula is fully recovered from Saturday’s grueling final, the Spaniard should be able to eliminate the Australian for the second time in as many weeks.
Other Notable Matches on Monday:
Naomi Osaka (13) vs. Camila Osorio – This will only be Osaka’s fourth match since her US Open upset at the hands of Leylah Fernandez. Osorio is 20-year-old from Colombia who ended 2021 at a career-high ranking thanks to reaching her second WTA final in October. This is their first career meeting.
Reilly Opelka (23) vs. Kevin Anderson – Opelka achieved his first two Masters 1000 semifinals last year, and debuted inside the top 20. Anderson has struggled to regain his level of a few years ago after battling multiple injuries. Six years ago in Atlanta, when Reilly was ranked 837th in the world, he upset Kevin in three sets.
Ash Barty (1) vs. Lesia Tsurenko (Q) – Barty was a stellar 42-8 in 2021, and started this season by winning a WTA title in Adelaide. Tsurenko is a 32-year-old who came through qualifying without dropping a set, and was a quarterfinalist at the 2018 US Open. Both of their previous encounters have occurred in Australia, with each prevailing once.
Barbora Krejcikova (4) vs. Andrea Petkovic – The reigning French Open champion is coming off the aforementioned demoralizing loss on Saturday to Paula Badosa. Last summer, Petkovic earned her first WTA title since 2015. But she also lost to Krejcikova last summer, as Barbora was victorious in straight sets at Wimbledon.
Sascha Zverev (3) vs. Daniel Altmaier – Zverev accumulated 59 wins last year, and has advanced to the second week at the last eight Majors. Altmaier is a fellow German who ended 2021 by winning a Challenger tournament in Puerto Vallarta.
Monday’s full Order of Play is here.
