Like a lot of things on the ATP tour these days, this Australian Open can be broken down into two sets of questions: One for the Top 3, the other for everyone else.
Let me start at the top. This year Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, and Andy Murray come to Melbourne with very distinct story lines. Djokovic is looking to stamp his end-of-2012 return to No. 1 with a major title, and leave no questions as to who the best player in the world is. At 31, Federer is trying, again, to, as Australian legend John Newcombe put it in a Melbourne paper on Friday, "fend off father time." Amid talk of reducing his schedule to extend his career, he begins 2013 having played no Aussie Open warm-up events. Murray, meanwhile, arrives in Melbourne with the biggest...
Read Full Article »
Recommended Articles
Courtney Nguyen, Beyond the Baseline - January 11, 2013
The Australian Open draw has been made, and the 30-minute delay due to the late arrival by boat of defending champions and No. 1 seeds Novak Djokovic and Victoria Azarenka kept people restless. The wait turned out to be well... more »
Jon Wertheim, Sports Illustrated - January 8, 2013
Downton Abbey is all well and good. But another dramatic/melodramatic highbrow/lowbrow serial -- seeped in tradition, filled with subplots, awash in compelling characters -- has returned. Yes, professional tennis is in full... more »
Peter Bodo, Tennis.com - January 1, 2013
I’m not big on conspiracy theories, but count me among those who suspect that things may not be what they appear in the formerly happy kingdom of the much-acclaimed King of Clay, Rafael Nadal. Like all palaces, this one... more »
Peter Bodo, Tennis.com - December 29, 2012
Far be it from me to suggest that Serena Williams isn’t going to end up No. 1 in the world at the end of 2013, although the trick I’d really like to see her pull off is completing a calendar-year Grand Slam while finishing... more »