Australian Open 2016: Schedule, Predictions for Thursday Melbourne Bracket
There are three epic singles matches on tap for Thursday in Melbourne at the 2016 Australian Open. Chief among them is the semifinal battle between No. 1 seed Novak Djokovic and No. 3 seed Roger Federer. The two men have played 44 times in their careers, and the standings are as close as can be.
The career series is tied at 44, per ATPWorldTour.com, and the two all-time greats have split the last four meetings. Australian Open TV previews the epic semifinal matchup:
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Thursday's match will mark the 15th time Djokovic and Federer have played each other at a Grand Slam and the fourth time they've faced off at the Australian Open. Djokovic has a 2-1 advantage in Melbourne, with the last victory having come in 2011.
The matches at the Aussie Open haven't been competitive. All three have been decided in straight sets. Federer has lost just one set so far in this year's tournament, while Gilles Simon pushed Djokovic to five sets in the fourth round.
Djokovic spoke with Australian Open TV after his 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 win over Kei Nishikori in the quarterfinals:
Despite what history says, it feels silly to expect another straight-sets victory by either man. If we are basing a prediction on the quality of play in the tournament up to this point, Federer is the pick. He's had little to no trouble in any of his matches, and he's had barely any stressful points to win.
Because he is 34 years old, there's a hesitancy to look at him as the favorite over Djokovic. There shouldn't be. Federer has shown he's capable of playing elite tennis into his thirties, and he'll continue to do that with a victory over Djokovic on Thursday.
Here's a look at the other singles matches on tap for Thursday along with predictions.
| Time | Matchup | Prediction |
| Not before Thursday at 1:30 p.m. locally; Wednesday at 9:30 p.m. ET | No. 1 Serena Williams vs. No. 4 Agnieszka Radwanska | Williams |
| After Williams vs. Radwanska | Johanna Konta vs. Angelique Kerber | Kerber |
| Thursday at 7:30 p.m. locally; Thursday at 3:30 a.m. ET | No. 1 Novak Djokovic vs. No. 3 Roger Federer | Federer |
You can see the entire Aussie Open schedule at AusOpen.com.
Serena Will Move Past Radwanska
Agnieszka Radwanska beat Serena Williams for the first time in nine tries a little over two weeks ago in the final of the Hopman Cup. However, that wasn't a Grand Slam event. More specifically, it wasn't the Australian Open, where Williams is the defending champion and six-time winner.
Radwanska is playing well. She's lost just one set at Melbourne, with her most recent win coming over No. 10 seed Carla Suarez-Navarro in the quarterfinals. Williams has yet to drop a set in the tournament. Since Camila Giorgi pushed her in each set in the first round, Williams has been her usual dominant self.
Radwanska's confidence should be fairly high coming in, but it won't take long for Williams' big serve and overall power game to bring her opponent back down to Earth.
Williams will win in straight sets.
Kerber Will Win Quick Turnaround Match
Angelique Kerber defeated No. 14 Victoria Azarenka on Wednesday to reach the semifinals of the Australian Open for the first time in her career. She'd lost the first six meetings to the Belarusian, but she played awesome tennis to earn the 6-3, 7-5 victory.
One day after pulling off one of the biggest wins of her career, Kerber has to face upstart Johanna Konta for a berth in the final. The unseeded Konta knocked off No. 8 Venus Williams and No. 21 Ekaterina Makarova to get to this point.
Konta beat China's Shuai Zhang in the quarterfinals on Wednesday, so she too will be competing after a quick turnaround. With Kerber having finally conquered Azarenka and being the more talented player overall, she has the edge over Konta.
Look for her to reach her first Grand Slam final with a three-set victory.
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