Novak Djokovic was slowed down by the Australian judiciary in defending his title. Since Roger Federer and Stan Wawrinka are also absent due to injury, there is only one player in the tableau who has already won in Melbourne: Rafael Nadal (2009).
But Alexander Zverev is also waiting in his half of the tableau. The German Olympic champion seems ready for his first Grand Slam title. Daniil Medvedev, who is now the top favorite, is in the other half. He triumphed for the first time in a major at the US Open, hard court is his best surface and last year only Djokovic was able to stop him in the final. His closest rival could be number 5 Andrei Rublev as it’s unclear what to expect from Stefanos Tsitsipas. Matteo Berrettini – the Italian can only meet an opponent from the top ten in the semifinals at the earliest – is capable of a cup.
Two players will definitely not keep their fingers crossed for Djokovic from afar. Nadal could become the sole record holder with his 21st Grand Slam title and Daniil Medvedev would replace the Serbs as number 1 in the world rankings with a tournament win.
