Medvedev, Nadal, Berrettini or Shapovalov. Who will dominate the Australian Open?

This year’s Australian Open has to do without the world number one Novak Djokovic and thus offers a very interesting and quite open battle for the winner of the first Grand Slam of the season. Who will dominate the tournament in Melbourne?

As the Australian Open moves into its second week, only the best are left in the tournament. The biggest surprise is the elimination of Alexander Zverev, the third player on the ATP rankings. The German tennis player already dropped out in the eighth round against Denis Shapovalov.

It was Zverev who, together with Daniil Medvedev, was one of the main favourites to win the Australian Open. In case of success, both of them had a chance to unseat Djokovic from the position of the world number one, but now only the Russian tennis player has this hope.

First, let’s recap the quarterfinal pairings:

Daniil Medvedev remains the main favourite. The second tennis player on the ATP ranking is playing a great tournament, he hasn’t faced any major problems so far, he has allowed his opponents only two sets, one to Kyrgios and one to Cressy.

A great defender, but he can also rely on his winning shots and great serve. His great strength is his great versatility, he is also good mentally. He is the winner of the last Grand Slam, when he defeated Djokovic in the final at the US Open.

The second biggest favourite is likely to be Rafael Nadal. You can never write off the Spanish bull, even at an advanced age. The 35-year-old tennis player has come back in a big way after almost seven months of injury.

He won three times 3: 0, only Khachanov took one set from him. With the change of balls, which are getting harder and less bouncy, Rafa’s biggest asset, which is the lifted forehand, with which all players on the circuit have problems, is disappearing a bit. Even so, the Mallorca native has a lot to offer, and his motivation is especially high. He is the first tennis player in history to win 21 Grand Slams.

But in the quarter-finals he will face a very unpleasant opponent, Denis Shapovalov. The Canadian tennis player makes no secret of the fact that Nadal is his great role model.

He is also a big hitter, plays at extreme risk and is not afraid to attack the whole match. When it comes down to it, he’s capable of beating Zverev 3:0, like he did in the eighth round.

The dark horse of the tournament is Félix Auxer-Aliassame. The 21-year-old reached the quarter-finals at Wimbledon and even the semi-finals at the US Open. At this year’s Australian Open, he is also already in the quarterfinals, but he will face Medvedev.

However, he is definitely not without a chance, he has been giving great performances in Melbourne and his aggressive game could pay off against Medvedev.

Matteo Berrettini must not be forgotten either. The seventh-ranked tennis player on the ATP rankings is showing great form in Melbourne, successively brushing aside Nakashima, Kozlov, Alcaraz and Carreña-Busta. His biggest strength is his cannon serve, which his opponents often don’t know how to handle.

Stefanos Tsitsipas is another option. Although he is fourth in the rankings, he hasn’t won a grand slam yet. Thus, his best achievements are the French Open final in 2021 and winning the 2019 Tournament of Champions.

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