Australian Open first round pairings announced

In the first round of the men’s singles at the Australian Open, one of the favorite tennis players, Spanish defending champion Rafael Nadal, will face 21-year-old British Jack Draper, seed number 40. Serbian Novak Djokovic, who is the most Laureate in the history of the tournament with 9 trophies, he will face number 75 in the world, the Spanish Roberto Carballes Baena.

Nadal, who holds the record for most Grand Slam wins (22) in men’s singles, and Djokovic, who has 21 championships, are unlikely to meet before the final.

In the first round, second-seeded Casper Ruud of Norway, Tomas Machac of the Czech Republic and third-seeded Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece will face Frenchman Quentin Halys.

GERMAN COMPETITION TO SWIATEK ON THE FIRST TOUR

In the women’s singles, the world number 1, the Polish Iga Swiatek, one of the big favorites of the tournament, will be the first round opponent of the 68th seed, the German Jule Niemeier.

World No. 2 Tunisian Ons Jabeur, who is the first African and Arab tennis player to play in a Grand Slam final, win the WTA 1000 tournament and reach the highest ranking, will be on court with the No. 88, the Slovenian Tamara Zidansek.

The highlight of the first round was between Victoria Azarenka of Belarus and Sofia Kenin of the USA, who had previously won the championship at this tournament.

The 2021 US Open champion, whose participation in the tournament remains uncertain due to her injury, will face Germany’s Tamara Korpatsch in the first round.

Kicking off on Monday 16 January at the Australian Tennis Center in Melbourne’s Olympic Park, the tournament will conclude with the men’s singles final on Sunday 29 January. (AA)