This year’s Australian Open is set to be a contest of rebounds, yet some of the stars of each strange comeback will compete for one of the most memorable seasons of the season.
For example, fans won’t be able to consider the Spaniard’s hopes of getting back to huge homerun tennis ended for this week after real-life Rafael Nadal suffered another injury during a warm-up occasion in Brisbane.
In any case, the game will invite back glimpses of Naomi Osaka and Emma Raducanu, both of whom have been absent for a long time.
Injuries plagued Raducanu’s 2023 season, with the Briton highlighting one of four big homerun opportunities – beaten in the second round of last year’s Australian Open.
Meanwhile, Osaka took a year off from the sport to focus on her psychological health before becoming a mother in July 2023.
Even though both have pulled out of the event just days before the Australian Open, both stars are still expected to highlight what promises to be an exciting contest at Melbourne Park.
Inspection Instructions
The Australian Open will start from January 14 and will run for 15 days till January 28.
Competition coordinators recently added an extra day to its timetable to reduce stress on players and fans following protests about matches ending in the early hours.
The new timetable comes in the wake of developing calls to limit completion times in a famously jam-packed scheme due to various matches running longer into the evening and having a negative impact on players.
Depending on where fans are on the planet, the action will be televised on Discovery+ and Eurosport, as well as ESPN in the US.
Men’s draw: Luck for Djokovic?
Many were confident that Nadal would be in contention for another major homerun title at this year’s Australian Open after nearly 12 months away from the game. He had not featured since last year’s edition after suffering a physical problem and undergoing a hip medical procedure in June, which sidelined him until the end of the 2023 season.
The Brisbane World Cup signaled the start of Nadal’s much-anticipated rebound and the Spaniard looked guaranteed before suffering a “miniature tear on the muscle”.
With Nadal out, all focus in the men’s draw is on Novak Djokovic.
The Serb needs only one more major homerun singles title to break the unbeaten men’s or alternatively women’s record, a feat that would make him the best tennis player of all time.
He currently shares the single giant homerun record of 24 with Margaret Court.
Djokovic capped off a stunning 2023 with three of four major homeruns and a record seventh ATP Finals title.
In any case, in the development of the current year’s Australian Open he experienced a slight wrist injury when he lost to Alex de Minaur in the Unified Cup quarterfinals.
Novak Djokovic is bidding to come out on top for his eleventh Australian Open championship.
Sidney Low/Cal Game Media/AP
“I think I’ll be OK,” Djokovic told reporters after the loss as he bid to come out on top for an eleventh Australian Open championship. “Anyway, it had a big impact, especially on the forehand and serve.”
The 36-year-old player will face 18-year-old Croatian Dino Prizmik in the main round.
‘Nole’ will no doubt be impressed by a large group of young potential hoping to knock him off his perch.
The main man to beat him to a big homerun last season was Carlos Alcaraz, and the Spaniard will be hoping to add to his tally of two important titles.
Novak Djokovic of Serbia celebrates after winning the first co-op match against Holger Rune of Denmark at the ATP Finals tennis event in Turin on November 12, 2023.
Djokovic needs to copy Brady and play at 40
Djokovic will also face competition from Italian Jannik Heaton, who ended the Serb’s 19-match winning streak in last year’s ATP Finals group arrangement, even though Djokovic continues to win the event.
American tennis is also on a wave of pressure at the moment, with Frances Tiafoe and young Ben Shelton both enjoying deep runs into major first homeruns.
Brad Gilbert, mentor to American star Coco Gauff, told CNN Game’s Ware Riddell while watching the men’s tour: “Heathen is an incredible caliber and he is very coachable. I believe he will be able to win his most memorable major in 2024.” Ready for it.” Ahead of the new season.
“I think Delinquent and Alcaraz, I wouldn’t be surprised at all to assume they each win [a title] and I have really big expectations for American Ben Shelton this year.
“I believe he’ll probably be the first American [male] to win the RAM since Andy Roddick.”
Ladies’ draw: Raducanu, Osaka return
In the mean time, in the ladies’ draw, the competition is totally open.
Osaka’s return will be a significant lift to the ladies’ down at the same time, taking into account she’s just two matches into her hotly anticipated return, a title run at Melbourne Park likely could be ridiculous.
The double cross Australian Open boss likewise faces an extreme test against France’s Caroline Garcia in the main round.
Second seed Aryna Sabalenka is the reigning champ and maybe the clearest danger to Świątek. The Belarusian will play Ella Seidel of Germany in the principal round.
Another competitor is American hotshot Gauff, who heads to Melbourne off the rear of winning her lady huge homerun finally year’s US Open.
The American additionally comes into the competition on great structure, having lifted her second continuous Auckland Exemplary – and eighth WTA title generally – subsequent to beating Elina Svitolina on January 7.
Gauff faces Slovakian Anna Karolína Schmiedlová in the primary round and her mentor is certain she can manage the strain that accompanies being a huge homerun champion.
“In the event that you get somewhat worse, you fall behind and there’s new youthful players coming up each year,” Gilbert said.
“You have no control over what individuals say regarding you, yet what you have some control over is the rival before you and how you contend every day of the week.
“Those are the things that are most vital that you really want to zero in on, not what the media will say you should do or shouldn’t do.”
Prize cash
Players will seek a record-breaking prize satchel at the current year’s Australian Open, with a sum of simply more than $58 million (86.5 million Australian dollars) available to all.
It’s a 13% expansion on last year’s pot, with the victors of both the people’s singles competitions procuring more than $2.1 million (3.15 Australian dollars).
The Australian Open says the award cash has more than quadrupled over the most recent twenty years having remained at $19.1 million out of 2005.