Australian Open 2016: Stars in Pursuit of Title Helped Most by Draw Results
If Novak Djokovic gets to the Australian Open finals, it's virtually a lock he's going to win again.
The reigning Australian Open champion has made it to the final pairing five times in his career, and all five times he's come out on top. He has the chance to make it five titles in the last six years, and six overall, should he run the table once again in Melbourne.
Over on the women's side, Serena Williams captured her first Aussie Open title in five years in 2015 with a straight-sets win over Maria Sharapova, indicating that she's not going to be the favorite heading into the tournament. The women's race is wide-open.
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Tennis is back, the Aussie Open draw will be released Friday and it's time to serve it up. Here are some top names that can benefit from a good draw.
Men's Draw
Novak Djokovic
Joker's fifth Aussie Open title last year set a new Open Era record in the major. The only unfortunate reality in this is there won't be a chance for a seven-peat.
But other than Stan Wawrinka's 2014 win, Melbourne has been Djokovic's area of domination since 2011. Only one of his wins have come by five sets, the rest either in four or straight. There's something about the confines of Melbourne Park that brings out the best in Djokovic. After all, half of his major titles have come in Australia.
For as long as he's on top of his game, Djokovic has to be considered the favorite. It's been the usual names toward the end, like Andy Murray, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, but Djokovic has been the most consistent.
And as if Djokovic needed to convince anyone that he's ready to assert his dominance in the Australian Open again, he made easy work of Nadal in the Qatar Open final in straight sets and feels more confident than before heading into Melbourne, per ESPN.com:
"The week that I have before the Australian Open starts will be very useful for me because I have played a lot, trained very hard, played a great five matches here.
I'm going to try to manage the energy in the days to come and work on certain specific things, but I'm ready for the competition. That's where I'm hoping I can continue this run and this great level of performance.
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A locked-in Djokovic could spell doom for the rest of the competition.
Rafael Nadal
There's this growing suspicion that Nadal isn't done yet.
Injuries have plagued the Spanish superstar's rise to stardom for the last five years, allowing Djokovic to sneak by and claim the top spot in the world.
Much like Federer returning to form last year, making the Wimbledon and U.S. Open finals before losing both to Djokovic, Nadal may not be finished yet. Despite dealing with knee troubles and hamstring issues that have lingered since his last Aussie Open win in 2009, Nadal has not had the power and agility that made him among the world's elite for almost an entire decade.
“It’s true that during my career I have been a little bit unlucky in this tournament,” Nadal said, per the Herald Sun. “But I love it here; I love competing here and that’s a huge motivation for me.”
Nadal will have to change his style of play if he wishes to prolong his career. He relied on power and speed when he was younger, but with how many issues he's had with his legs and him turning 30 years old in June, that won't be the case. But should Nadal get the luck of the draw, he could make a run, per Jason Le Miere of the International Business Times:
"Beating Djokovic on his favorite surface and at what has been his most successful Grand Slam, winning it five times, could well be too high a hurdle for Nadal to overcome at this point. Yet if he can get a win over one of the top four and earn a semifinal or even final place, it would mark real progress on the way back. Encouragement for the season ahead could also come by continuing to embrace the more aggressive style he showcased in Doha.
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Tournaments are all about lucky bounces. They came for Federer last year. Why not Nadal?
Women's Draw
Serena Williams
She's the most dominant women's tennis player on the planet. That alone is a reason why Serena Williams can't be counted out of the Australian Open.
While some would consider it rust for Williams to not have played since last year's U.S. Open (compared to Djokovic playing in two tournaments in a three-week span), it's been a period of much-needed rest.
Williams had been dealing with knee issues while falling just short of the calendar Grand Slam, hence her semifinal exit in said U.S. Open. But as the No. 1 seed, and with plenty of months to rest, Williams could be back to her old form.
“My body is feeling great now,” she said, per the National. "Obviously I had a hiccup but right now it is doing much better. I’ve had a few days of training so it’s looking good.”
That's not what the rest of the field wanted to hear. Williams won the Aussie Open last year for the first time since 2010, and she will go for her seventh Australian Open championship this year.
If she's fully healthy like she says, then it will take a lot to dethrone Williams.
During the time Williams did not win the Australian Open, one woman asserted her dominance and won back-to-back titles.
But ever since Victoria Azarenka won those Aussie Open titles, she hasn't been the same. Azarenka hadn't won a WTA title since 2013 before breaking through and winning last week's Brisbane International.
If momentum plays a role, Azarenka comes into the Australian Open with a lot of it, along with confidence she hasn't had since the last time she won in Melbourne, per WTA.com:
"I'm excited to follow my journey. I'm excited to live my journey. It's a great feeling. Stay in the moment, be present - I'm really enjoying this moment. I think it's precious. So I just want to enjoy that and see how I feel tomorrow, see what I want to do, and just try to keep going.
The focus is still very much on Melbourne. I'm going to do everything I can to prepare and feel the most comfortable to start the tournament. I can't wait to be in Melbourne. I love the city.
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When Azarenka says she loves Melbourne, that's not a lie. She's won 35 of her last 39 matches in the Land Down Under. When she plays in Australia, good things happen. Tack that on with her latest win in the Brisbane International, and the one who may rival Williams in the Aussie Open may be the woman who's won only once in the last few years.
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