It’s that time of the year again. We’re talking about the start of the Grand Slam season with the 2020 Australian Open set to kick off this January 20. Novak Djokovic is the defending champion in the men’s side, and he’ll look to get another title in Melbourne, though, that is, of course, going to be easier said than done. Read on for some choice players to watch in the Land Down Under.
TV Broadcast: ESPN, NBC Sports, TSN, Tennis Channel
FAVORITES
Novak Djokovic (+160)
There’s no way Djokovic isn’t one of the players to watch in the 2020 Australian Open. The Serbian owns the most Australian Open singles titles with seven, the latest being the one he notched in 2019 when he ran the gauntlet in Melbourne, including a win over Rafael Nadal in the finals match. Djokovic won two Grand Slams last year, also taking home the crown in Wimbledon to go with a semifinals finish in the French Open and a Round of 16 appearances in the US Open. Djokovic is as safe of a bet there is in tennis right now.
Rafael Nadal (+350)
Nadal has won in the Australian Open just once (2009), which is still a sure way to shock some sports fans, especially the casual ones. Nadal has seemingly won it all, but somehow, success in Melbourne has always eluded the Spaniard. Nadal came close to winning it again last year, but fell short of the goal when he lost to Djokovic in the finals. Still, Nadal can’t be counted out, especially when taking into account that he had a fantastic Grand Slam season overall in 2019, winning the French Open (his 12th), reaching the semis of the Wimbledon tournament, and topping it all off with a win in the US Open. Nadal has reached the quarters of the Australian Open in five of the last six editions of the event.
SLEEPERS
Marin Cilic (+4000)
At +4000, Cilic doesn’t seem to be a bad pick for a sleeper. Cilic made the Round of 16 last year. Prior to that, he reached the finals in 2018, losing to Roger Federer in a five-set thriller. Cilic has a career ATP record of 310-163 on hard surfaces with 14 hard-court tournament titles, the most out of any playing surfaces in his career.
Nick Kyrgios (+4000)
Kyrgios hasn’t made much noise in the Australian Open since he started to compete in the event in 2012. The deepest he’s gone to was a quarterfinals exit in 2015. Since then, he’s struck out no later than the Round of 16. Last year, he has eliminated int he first round. Kyrgios is a mercurial player whose temperament and overall character often precedes his talent on the court. That being said, Kyrgios could be motivated to perform better by what’s happening in his home county, recently showing passion for Australia’s fight in the current bushfire crisis.
LONG SHOT
Kevin Anderson (+6600)
Anderson had a somewhat surprising 2018, when he had a runner-up finish in Wimbledon and made two round of 16 appearances (French Open and US Open), but the momentum was barely carried into 2019. Last year, his only notable Grand Slam performance was a Round of 32 exit in Wimbledon. Anderson can still work some magic based on his form in a recent meeting with no. 1 Novak Djokovic, battling the Serbian toe-to-toe, albeit in a 6-7 (5-7), 6-7 (6-8) in Brisbane.
Writer’s Prediction
Djokovic reigns again in the Australian Open with a five-set win over Rafael Nadal in the finals — again.
