Australian Open 2017: Tuesday Schedule, Melbourne Bracket Matchups, Predictions
Novak Djokovic will take to the court for Day 2 of the 2017 Australian Open as he begins his quest to win a third-straight title in Melbourne and the 13th Grand Slam singles title of his excellent career.
Tennis fans have grown accustomed to Djokovic playing on the opening day of major tournaments, but the Serbian is in fact the second seed in Melbourne this year, with Andy Murray taking over the top seed after a brilliant 2016.
Others in action on a star-studded Tuesday include women's No. 1 Serena Williams, women's No. 3 Agnieszka Radwanska, men's No. 3 Milos Raonic and men's No. 9 Rafael Nadal.
Here's a rundown of singles matchups and predictions for Day 2 of the Australian Open. For a complete look at times and courts, visit AUSOpen.com. Live streaming of many of the day's matches can be found on Watch ESPN.
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| Matchup | Prediction |
| No. 5 Karolina Pliskova vs. Sara Sorribes Tormo | Pliskova |
| Belinda Bencic vs. No. 2 Serena Williams | Williams |
| Florian Mayer vs. No. 9 Rafael Nadal | Nadal |
| Fernando Verdasco vs. No. 2 Novak Djokovic | Djokovic |
| Tsvetana Pironkova vs. No. 3 Agnieszka Radwanska | Radwanska |
| Kirsten Flipkens vs. No. 9 Johanna Konta | Konta |
| Dustin Brown vs. No. 3 Milos Raonic | Raonic |
| Heather Watson vs. No. 18 Samantha Stosur | Stosur |
| No. 15 Grigor Dimitrov vs. Christopher O'Connell | Dimitrov |
| No. 22 Daria Gavrilova vs. Naomi Broady | Broady |
| No. 24 Alexander Zverev vs. Robin Haase | Zverev |
| No. 6 Dominika Cibulkova vs. Denisa Allertova | Cibulkova |
| No. 17 Caroline Wozniacki v s. Arina Rodionova | Wozniacki |
| No. 21 David Ferrer vs. Omar Jasika | Ferrer |
| Kateryna Bondarenko vs. No. 21 Caroline Garcia | Garcia |
| Reilly Opelka vs. No. 11 David Goffin | Goffin |
| Jordan Thompson vs. Joao Sousa | Sousa |
| No. 16 Barbora Strycova vs. Elizaveta Kulichkova | Strycova |
| Yanina Wickmayer vs. Lucie Safarova | Safarova |
| No. 14 Elenea Vesnina vs. Ana Bogdan | Bogdan |
| No. 8 Dominic Thiem vs. Jan-Lennard Struff | Thiem |
| No. 6 Gael Monfils vs. Jiri Vesely | Monfils |
| Jared Donaldson vs. Rogerio Dutra Silva | Donaldson |
| Kyle Edmund vs. Santiago Giraldo | Giraldo |
| Jennifer Brady vs. Johanna Larsson | Brady |
| Kayla Day vs. Andrea Petkovic | Day |
| Ekaterina Alexandrova vs. No. 30 Ekaterina Makarova | Makarova |
| Yoshihito Nishioka vs. Alex Bolt | Nishioka |
| No. 13 Roberto Bautista Agut vs. Guido Pella | Agut |
| Danka Kovinic vs. Saisai Zheng | Kovinic |
| Luksika Kumkhum vs. Naomi Osaka | Osaka |
| Sara Errani vs. Risa Ozaki | Ozaki |
| Blake Mott vs. No. 18 Richard Gasquet | Gasquet |
| Tommy Haas vs. Benoit Paire | Paire |
| Thomas Fabbiano vs. Donald Young | Young |
| Lin Zhu vs. Jelena Ostapenko | Ostapenko |
| Gilles Muller vs. Taylor Fritz | Muller |
| Irina Falconi vs. Xinyun Han | Han |
| Frances Tiafoe vs. Mikhail Kukushkin | Kukushkin |
| Mandy Minella vs. Magda Linette | Minella |
| Hyeon Chung vs. Renzo Olivo | Chung |
| No. 25 Gilles Simon vs. Michael Mmoh | Simon |
| Donna Vekic vs. Lizette Cabrera | Vekic |
| Mikhail Youzhny vs. Marcos Baghdatis | Baghdatis |
| Camila Giorgi vs. No. 12 Timea Bacsinszky | Bacsinszky |
| Cagla Buyukakcay vs. Oceane Dodin | Dodin |
| No. 28 Alize Cornet vs. Myrtille Georges | Cornet |
| Alexandr Dolgopolov vs. Borna Corcic | Corcic |
| Denis Istomin vs. Ivan Dodig | Istomin |
| Nikoloz Basilashvili vs. No. 32 Philipp Kohlschreiber | Kohlschreiber |
| Maria Sakkari vs. Anett Kontaveit | Sakkari |
| Adam Pavlasek vs. Andrew Whittington | Pavlasek |
| Anna Blinkova vs. Monica Niculescu | Niculescu |
| No. 30 Pablo Carreno Busta vs. Peter Polansky | Busta |
| No. 20 Ivo Karlovic vs. Horacio Zeballos | Karlovic |
| Mirjana Lucic-Baroni vs. Qiang Wang | Wang |
| No. 25 Timea Babos vs. Nicole Gibbs | Babos |
| Lara Arruabarrena vs. No. 31 Yulia Putintseva | Arruabarrena |
| Fabio Fognini vs. No. 28 Feliciano Lopez | Lopez |
| Karin Knapp vs. Su-Wei Hsieh | Hsieh |
| Radu Albot vs. Carlos Berlocq | Albot |
| Daniil Medvedev vs. Ernesto Escobedo | Medvedev |
| Ana Konjuh vs. Kristina Mladenovic | Konjuh |
Djokovic has so thoroughly dominated at the Australian Open the past couple of years, it's strange to see him come into the tournament as anything other than the top seed. But Murray's excellent 2016 that saw him win Wimbledon, the ATP Tour Finals, a gold at the Summer Olympics and reach the finals of the French and Aussie Opens makes him top dog in Melbourne.
Djokovic's opening round opponent is the veteran Fernando Verdasco, who has four wins against the Serbian but hasn't beaten him on a hard court since 2005. Djokovic has won the last four meetings between the two, all of them on hard courts. While it bodes well for his success on Tuesday, Djokovic isn't taking his opponent lightly.
"I can't call it a nightmare draw. I just see it as a huge challenge. I hope I'll be able to deliver," Djokovic said, per Reuters (via the Times of India).
"He has won against most of the top players. He's not overwhelmed by the occasion. I hope I will not get to the stage where I have to defend match points."
Djokovic is coming off a win over Murray in the finals of the Qatar Open earlier this month, so if he and the Scottish star are on a collision course, it figures to be another epic matchup between the two rivals.
Whiie Djokovic is coming into this tournament on a strong note, the same cannot be said for Williams.
The 35-year-old suffered a surprise defeat to world No. 72 Madison Brengle in the second round of the Auckland Classic on Jan. 4, a supremely disappointing result for her as she looks to win her 23rd Grand Slam singles title, which would move her past Steffi Graf for the most in the Open Era and leave her one behind Margaret Court's all-time record of 24 Slams.
Though Williams on her day is one of the most dominant athletes in the world, she does face an opponent in Belinda Bencic who has seen her at her best and won anyway, per the Guardian's Bryan Armen Graham:
"She opens her Australian Open bid on Tuesday in Melbourne – a prime-time telecast on Monday night in the US – with a dandy of an opener against the Swiss ingenue Belinda Bencic. The former French Open and Wimbledon girls’ champion was one of only three opponents to beat Williams during her high-flying 2015 campaign that saw her come within touching distance of a calendar-year grand slam. Bencic’s fightback from a set down in that Toronto semi-final made her the youngest player to defeat Williams since Sharapova back in 2004.
"
Williams is certainly not at her best coming into Melbourne, with only one Grand Slam victory in 2016 and currently ranked second in the world behind Angelique Kerber, who defeated Williams in the Australian Open final last year. An upset is definitely possible for Williams on Tuesday, but as Graham noted, "only a fool would bet against her."
Bencic is in poor form, having won only one of her last seven matches. She may have a bit of a mental edge thanks to that hard court win in 2015, but Williams should be able to handle whatever the Swiss starlet sends her way.
The American's real tests will come later on in Melbourne should she navigate her way through the early rounds. At this stage of her career, Williams is not only battling her opponents but the relentless march of time, as years of elite tennis have taken a toll on her body and she rarely comes across an opponent who isn't significantly younger.
Still, if anyone has the staying power and brilliance to keep winning despite injuries, fatigue and the pressure of a world waiting for her to beat a longstanding record, it's Williams.
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