The draw for the tennis’s first grand slam of the year—the Australian Open—was released in Melbourne on Thursday night.
For the men, Roger Federer is the top seed while Serena Williams is the top seed for the woman. The seedings followed official ATP and WTA rankings for the men and women respectively.
Andy Roddick is the highest seeded American at No. 7. Placed in the third quarter of the draw, he faces 81st-ranked Thiemo de Bakker from Holland first. This is, in theory, a very straightforward match.
The first seeded player Roddick could face is fellow American No. 25 Sam Querrey in the third round. Roddick and Querrey are the only two seeded American men in the draw.
Serena’s first match is against Urszula Radwanska of Poland, who is ranked 71. Serena could face fellow American Jill Craybas in the second round.
Venus, seeded sixth, is in the second quarter of the draw, meaning she could face her sister in the semifinal. But initially, she’ll face a difficult test against Lucie Safarova from the Czech Republic. Safarova is ranked No. 41.
For the men, Roger Federer is the top seed while Serena Williams is the top seed for the woman. The seedings followed official ATP and WTA rankings for the men and women respectively.
Andy Roddick is the highest seeded American at No. 7. Placed in the third quarter of the draw, he faces 81st-ranked Thiemo de Bakker from Holland first. This is, in theory, a very straightforward match.
The first seeded player Roddick could face is fellow American No. 25 Sam Querrey in the third round. Roddick and Querrey are the only two seeded American men in the draw.
Serena’s first match is against Urszula Radwanska of Poland, who is ranked 71. Serena could face fellow American Jill Craybas in the second round.
Venus, seeded sixth, is in the second quarter of the draw, meaning she could face her sister in the semifinal. But initially, she’ll face a difficult test against Lucie Safarova from the Czech Republic. Safarova is ranked No. 41.
Federer’s opening match is against Russia’s Igor Andreev, a very accomplished player ranked No. 36. Considering 32 men are seeded, this is a very difficult way to start a tournament for Federer.
Federer’s draw is not an easy one. His quarterfinal opponent could be No. 6 Nikolay Davydenko. Davydenko is red hot right now. He has beaten Federer two straight times including in the semifinal of the London Masters last November.
Davydenko also won a warm-up tournament last week in Doha, beating Federer and Nadal along the way. He has to be considered a strong favorite to win his first grand slam title.
Nadal, who has not been his dominant self for months, could face No. 5 Andy Murray in the quarterfinals.
Justine Henin makes her return to the grand slam scene in Melbourne. She has had an effective warm-up, losing to fellow comeback queen Kim Clijsters in a third-set tiebreaker last week in Brisbane.
Henin is unseeded and could face No. 5 Elena Dementieva in the second round. Clijsters is seeded No. 15 and could face Henin in the quarterfinal.
Play at Melbourne Park begins on Monday as Spain’s Rafael Nadal and Serena Williams attempt to defend their titles in the blistering heat of the Australian summer.
Men’s Top Seeds
1. Roger Federer (SUI)
2. Rafael Nadal (ESP)
3. Novak Djokovic (SRB)
4. Juan Martin del Potro (ARG)
5. Andy Murray (GBR)
6. Nikolay Davydenko (RUS)
7. Andy Roddick (USA)
8. Robin Soderling (SWE)
Women’s Top Seeds
1. Serena Williams (USA)
2. Dinara Safina (RUS)
3. Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS)
4. Caroline Wozniacki (DEN)
5. Elena Dementieva (RUS)
6. Venus Williams (USA)
7. Victoria Azarenka (BLR)
8. Jelena Jankovic (SRB)
Federer’s draw is not an easy one. His quarterfinal opponent could be No. 6 Nikolay Davydenko. Davydenko is red hot right now. He has beaten Federer two straight times including in the semifinal of the London Masters last November.
Davydenko also won a warm-up tournament last week in Doha, beating Federer and Nadal along the way. He has to be considered a strong favorite to win his first grand slam title.
Nadal, who has not been his dominant self for months, could face No. 5 Andy Murray in the quarterfinals.
Justine Henin makes her return to the grand slam scene in Melbourne. She has had an effective warm-up, losing to fellow comeback queen Kim Clijsters in a third-set tiebreaker last week in Brisbane.
Henin is unseeded and could face No. 5 Elena Dementieva in the second round. Clijsters is seeded No. 15 and could face Henin in the quarterfinal.
Play at Melbourne Park begins on Monday as Spain’s Rafael Nadal and Serena Williams attempt to defend their titles in the blistering heat of the Australian summer.
Men’s Top Seeds
1. Roger Federer (SUI)
2. Rafael Nadal (ESP)
3. Novak Djokovic (SRB)
4. Juan Martin del Potro (ARG)
5. Andy Murray (GBR)
6. Nikolay Davydenko (RUS)
7. Andy Roddick (USA)
8. Robin Soderling (SWE)
Women’s Top Seeds
1. Serena Williams (USA)
2. Dinara Safina (RUS)
3. Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS)
4. Caroline Wozniacki (DEN)
5. Elena Dementieva (RUS)
6. Venus Williams (USA)
7. Victoria Azarenka (BLR)
8. Jelena Jankovic (SRB)
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