MELBOURNE: To start his quest for an 11th Australian Open title, top seed Novak Djokovic was drawn on Thursday against a fortunate loser or qualifier. In the third round, he might face fellow Grand Slam winner Andy Murray. After defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas in the previous year’s final, the Serbian, who has won 24 majors, went on to win the US Open and French Open. The 36-year-old, however, will start his defence under duress because of a wrist issue that hindered him in the United Cup, when he was defeated by Australian Alex De Minaur. With Djokovic a possible quarterfinalist and Matteo Berrettini, a former top-10 Italian, as his opening opponent, Greek seventh seed Tsitsipas will have a difficult battle in replicating his 2023 achievement.
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The only player to defeat Djokovic at a Slam event in the previous year to win Wimbledon, Carlos Alcaraz, the second-ranked player in Spain, opens his campaign against French seasoned player Richard Gasquet. Daniil Medvedev, the third seed and 2021 and 2022 Melbourne finalist, got a qualifier in the opening round, just like Djokovic. In the third round, the Russian might play 27th seed Felix Auger-Aliassime, while the Canadian will have a difficult first test against former world number three Dominic Thiem.
