The Aussie Open are already underway and I am sure a lot of you are excited to watch the first Grand Slam of the year. The players are rested and excited to play again. Last year Djokovic won the historic final against Rafa Nadal who is unfortunately not playing this year due to his injury problems.
Before I tell you who my favorites to win the tournament are, let’s have a quick look at a nice preview video for the Aussie Open!
This time I will take a closer look at my Top 3 favorites for the men’s and the women’s draw.
The Men’s Draw
On the men’s side I believe Novak Djokovic is the clear favorite to win his third title in a row in Australia. Djokovic has consistently played the best Tennis throughout 2011 and 2012. He had to play a lot of tough matches in the past two years, which led to very few below average performances.
If everybody is fit and in good form, I believe Djokovic is the best player right now and since he had enough time to rest and prepare, I pick him as my favorite to win the tournament!
Djokovic’s game is almost complete these days. He improved his serve, which was at times a liability and he takes the ball extremely early. Winning at the highest level in men’s Tennis requires that you play with a lot of risk and don’t make many unforced errors. Djokovic has been the best at achieving this over the last couple of years.
His backhand is probably the best two-hander that I have ever seen and he also returns very well. He has gotten tougher mentally, which at times has been a problem for him. Last but not least, his forehand is more consistent now as well and that makes him really tough to beat!
Djokovic In Great Form Against Haas in 2013
In my opinion, Andy Murray has the second best chance to win the Australian Open title this year!
Hiring Ivan Lendl as his coach was certainly one of the best moves Murray made over the last couple of years. Lendl has given him the confidence that he sometimes lacked and he also plays more aggressive now.
His movement is absolutely superb and in my opinion the best on Tour. Over the last couple of years he worked hard with his fitness coach Jez Green and has improved his maximum strength values by quite a bit.
Winning the Olympics and his first Grand Slam title at the US Open last year have probably also given him the belief that he can now win a lot more Grand Slam titles.
Murray Playing Well In His Finals Win At Brisbane 2013
Roger Federer is only the third favorite to win the title this year in my opinion. Federer of course can still play at an unbelievable level but I do consider him somewhat of an outsider compared to Djokovic and Murray!
Federer at his best can of course still compete with these guys but it gets tougher and tougher for him to play at his best. I think he made a really good move in shortening his schedule for the 2013 season. He is no longer too concerned with regaining the number 1 ranking and therefore focuses on being ready for the Grand Slams.
At the end of the day though Federer is 31 years old and Djokovic and Murray are 6 years younger and in their absolute prime. At 31 it is simply a little bit tougher to play that many high-level matches in a row and also he might be just a bit slower than he was 5-6 years ago and that can be devastating when you are fighting for really tiny edges on the court!
Federer Hitting Some Shots At The Aussie Open 2013
The Women’s Draw
On the women’s side I also believe there is a clear favorite in Serena Williams. Serena dominated the second half of 2012, winning Wimbledon, the Olympics, the US Open and the year end championships in Istanbul.
It appears that Serena has regained some of her old strength since she hired french coach Patrick Mouratoglou. Rumors have it that she is also dating Mouratoglou. Either way the two managed to get Serena to play at her absolute best at the end of 2012.
Serena has always had a strength advantage over her competition and maximum strength is one of the most important factors in high level Tennis these days. That being said, Serena was not always in great shape throughout her career and strength alone will only get you so far. Nowadays she seems to move really well around the court and that makes her almost unbeatable in my opinion!
Highlights Of Serena Winning Her Fifth Wimbledon Title in 2012
If Serena is close to her year-end 2012 form I believe nobody can beat her in Australia!
The second best player after Serena is Victoria Azarenka in my opinion. Azarenka has continued to improve over the last couple of years. She moves extremely well and hits phenomenal groundstrokes.
The one thing that she lacks though is a great serve. Her serve is average; neither good nor bad. If she wants to beat Serena in great form she needs to serve a lot better in my opinion. Off the ground she might have a slight edge over Serena but Serena outserves her by a big margin!
Azarenka Highlights Against Perbak In Brisbane 2013
Maria Sharapova is ranked number 2 in the world right now but in my opinion she is quite a bit behind Williams and Azarenka when it comes to her chances for winning in Australia this year.
Sharapova had a very good year in 2012. She continued to improve and had consistently good results. Nevertheless, I think Serena Williams and Victoria Azarenka have quite an edge over her when they are in good form.
Sharapova basically lacks two things when it comes to beating Serena and Vika in the Grand Slams. She does not serve well enough for her height and and at times still struggles with too many double faults.
And just as importantly, she cannot move as well as Williams and Azarenka due to her height. If you cannot move as well you need to play super aggressive, which she tries and does a good job off but usually that is not enough.
Maria Hitting On Rod Laver Arena In 2013
Overall I must say that men’s and women’s Tennis are both at a great time with several great champions competing for Grand Slam titles. It should be a great tournament and please let me know who your favorites to win the tournament are!
