Australian Open 2022: Men’s and Women’s Draw Preview and Analysis

The start of the 2022 tennis season has delivered an Australian Open unlike any other, and the tournament draws will be impacted by the events surrounding Novak Djokovic. His vaccination and visa cancellation saga has turned Down Under upside down.

Still, as we preview the men’s and women’s draws for the 2022 Australian Open, Djokovic sits atop the men’s draw with– from a tennis perspective– a fairly uncomplicated path to the final. That doesn’t account for off-court events, which include a possible deportation from Australia, a crowd that is angered by his presence, and fellow players who are eager to stop him from winning a record-breaking 21st Grand Slam.

Women’s Draw

Ash Barty, Australia’s favorite daughter, reigns as the top seed on the women’s side. Although an intriguing potential match-up lurks. If Barty, who has won the French Open and Wimbledon, is able to get through an unremarkable group in her first three rounds, she faces a potential blockbuster matchup with Naomi Osaka in the Round of 16. That’s tough for both players. Osaka won the Australian Open in 2021 but took time off for the majority of the year for mental health reasons. As such, her ranking slipped. That’s how she finds herself with the prospect of playing Barty so early.

The bottom of the draw features the 2 seed Aryna Sabalenka. Unfortunately, the Belarussian has been saddled with a case of the yips on her second serve and certainly cannot be a favorite to advance deep in the tournament. Players to watch include Simona Halep, who won a warm up tournament last week, former French Open champion Iga Swiatek, and American Coco Gauff, who has made adjustments to shorten the backswing on her forehand in line with the Aussie surface.

The first-round barnburner match belongs to Australia’s Ajla Tomljanovic and 2021 Indian Wells champ Paula Badosa, who has seen her game catch fire in the past 6 months.

Other than Sabalenka, the player who appears out of form is…