It’s only a matter of hours before the Australian Open gets underway and soon the Rod Laver Arena will be jam-packed with fans and spectators who will witness the best tennis players in the world battle it out to claim the first Grand Slam of 2017.A number of questions will cross through the minds of fans and critics prior to the Men’s singles tournament like “will Novak Djokovic win a record seventh Australian Open title?” or “will Andy Murray finally end his hoodoo at the Australian Open finals?” or “will the tournament be conquered by a Federer or a Nadal?” or “will this be the slam of Alexander Zverev?”The likes of Stan Wawrinka, Milos Raonic and Kei Nishikori were more than a match for the likes of Murray and Djokovic last year and the kind of form they have been in, they can be considered to be at least dark horses for the title. However, over the years there have been a number of “also-ran” players who have shown a lot of potential and have reached the latter stages of the Australian Open but couldn’t perform well at those stages.On some occasions, these players were overshadowed by the Big Four but on numerous other occasions, they have not done much more than making up the list of seeded players. A few of these players had struggled during last year’s ATP World Tour due to form and fitness issues but they will be expected to have a better season this Tour. Here’s a short preview of these players and what are their chances at this year’s Australian Open.#8. John IsnerThe tall American came into the limelight by stunning the then Wimbledon runner-up Andy Roddick in the third round of the 2009 US Open. A few months later at the 2010 Wimbledon, Isner won the longest match in tennis history by defeating Frenchman Nicolas Mahut in a match that lasted eleven hours and five minutes with the final set alone lasting above eight hours with the scoreline 70-68. Isner reached his first Grand Slam quarter-final at the 2011 US Open and entered the Top 10 of the ATP rankings in 2012.Isner won at least one ATP title each from 2013-2015 and last year reached the final of the Paris Masters before losing to newly crowned World No.1 Andy Murray. Nonetheless, he ended 2016 ranked 19th which was his seventh consecutive year-end finish in the Top 20.Despite his powerful serve and having gained a lot of praise for his composure, Isner has done very little to justify his talent, especially in the Grand Slam level as he has reached only one Grand Slam quarter-final. Isner’s performance at the Australian Open hasn’t been too impressive as well with his best being reaching the fourth round in 2010 and 2016 where he lost to Andy Murray and David Ferrer respectively, both in straight sets.Seeded 19th, Isner has been drawn in Section-1 of the main draw of this year’s Australian Open and is expected to have a cakewalk till the third round where he could face 16th seeded Frenchman Lucas Pouille who improved immensely last year and even if he overcomes Pouille, Isner will have his work cut out as he will be up against five-time runner-up and top seed Andy Murray in the fourth round who will be expected to reach there with ease. Although it is highly unlikely that Isner will reach his second Grand Slam quarter-final at the Australian Open, his powerful and consistent serve combined with his composure and powerful ground strokes will surely be something that the top ranked players will be wary of.
#7. Roberto Bautista Agut
The Spaniard created one of the upsets of the 2014 Australian Open by stunning 2009 US Open champion and then fifth seed Juan Martin Del Potro in the second round which earned him the nickname “Aussie Agut”. Bautista Agut again created headlines later that year by reaching the semi-finals of the Madrid Open. His performances in the 2014 ATP World Tour earned him the ATP’s Most Improved Player Award and a place in the Top 15 of the ATP rankings.However, a few disappointing performances saw Bautista Agut end 2015 out of the Top 20 but he bounced back well last year with the highlight of his Tour being reaching his first ever Masters 1000 final at Shanghai by stunning Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals. He ended the year ranked 14th in the world.Bautista Agut has reached the fourth round of all Grand Slams and given the promising performances he put on last year, there is a good chance that the Spaniard might reach his first Grand Slam quarter-final this year as well as enter the Top 10 of the ATP rankings. Bautista Agut has reached the fourth round of the Australian Open twice, in 2014 and 2016, with his best chance of reaching the quarter-finals coming last year when he gave Tomas Berdych a tough fight before losing in five sets.This year, Bautsita Agut has been drawn in Section 6 of the main draw and will be up against Argentine Guido Pella in the first round but will be expected to win his opening game and his second round match as well where he would most probably play Yoshihito Nishioka.However, he would face a tricky challenge in the third round where he would most likely face David Ferrer who has been out of touch lately but having known Ferrer to bounce back from these setbacks, he could give Bautista Agut a tough fight. If he wins against Ferrer, Bautista Agut would have an even tougher competitor in the fourth round in third seed Milos Raonic who is one of the tournament favorites.Although the Spaniard will be expected to choke in the fourth round once again, he is capable of producing an upset or two and might finally end his fourth round drought at a Grand Slam this year.
#6. David Goffin
The Belgian first came into prominence when he made to the fourth round of the French Open as a lucky loser and within the next three years, entered the Top 20 of the ATP rankings through a number of decent runs in major ATP tournaments.Last year’s World Tour was Goffin’s most consistent of his career as he reached his first Masters 1000 semi-final at Indian Wells which was followed by another semi-final at the Miami Masters. A decent clay-court season was ended by his first ever Grand Slam quarter-final at the French Open. Goffin produced a number of decent performances following the French Open and as a result, reached a career-high ranking of 11 which would also be his year-end ranking. He also played one match at the World Tour Finals in London as a reserve for the injured Gael Monfils.Goffin’s best performance at the Australian Open is last year’s fourth round appearance where he lost to Roger Federer in straight sets. This year, Goffin has been handed a relatively easy draw where he would be expected to easily reach the fourth round with 20th seeded Ivo Karlovic being the only formidable opponent he might have to face. In the fourth round, Goffin would most likely face eighth seed Dominic Thiem who beat him in the quarter-finals of the French Open last year.Even though Thiem has been in decent form lately, there is a good chance that Goffin might get the better of him as his game has improved immensely in the last 4-5 months. However, the quarter-finals may be the farthest Goffin might reach as he would be up against six-time champion and second seed Novak Djokovic. Nonetheless, Goffin would be a formidable opponent for any player and he could well be one of the dark horses to watch out for in Melbourne.
#5. Richard Gasquet
The Frenchman has had a total roller-coaster career with his form being totally sinusoidal since 2007. Gasquet had a good season in 2015 where he reached his second Wimbledon semi-final and his third Grand Slam semi-final. Last year, Gasquet produced a couple of decent performances but issues with his back resulted in inconsistent performances and he fell out of the Top 15, having ended the year ranked 18th.Known for his complete game and elegant backhand, Gasquet could have achieved much more in his career than he has if it were not for his injury struggles. Gasquet’s performances in Grand Slams have been good, having reached at least the quarter-finals of three Grand Slams. The Australian Open in the only major where Gasquet is yet to reach the quarter-finals, having reached the fourth round on four occasions in 2007, 2008, 2012, and 2013.Gasquet has looked in good form this year so far, having helped France to victory at the Hopman Cup alongside Kristina Mladenovic. In the Australian Open, Gasquet has been drawn in Section 8 of the main draw and is expected to reach the third round with ease. At the third round, Gasquet would face 15th seed Grigor Dimitrov who has been in good form lately, having won the Brisbane International a few days back.Even if Gasquet beats Dimitrov, he would have to carry out the Herculean task of defeating Novak Djokovic in the fourth round. However, a player like Gasquet cannot be just written off as he has beaten Djokovic once and if he somehow triumphs over Djokovic then there is a good chance Gasquet might even reach his fourth Grand Slam semi-final as then he would be up against either Dominic Thiem or David Goffin in the quarter-finals. Nonetheless, Gasquet looks to be in fine shape and he would be eager to prove a point in the Australian Open.
#4. Gael Monfils
The Frenchman has produced a number of stellar performances throughout his career so far but has not done much to justify his talent as he has gone through a number of inconsistent periods. Monfils had a decent ATP World Tour last year where he reached his second Grand Slam semi-final at the US Open and a career-high ranking of World No.6.Monfils’ Australian Open performances haven’t been very good compared to his performances in French and US Opens with his best performance coming last year when he reached the quarter-finals before losing to Milos Raonic in four sets. Monfils will be playing his first tournament of 2017 at the Australian Open and hasn’t been handed the easiest of draws.Monfils will begin his Australian Open campaign against Czech Jiri Vesely who beat him the second round of Wimbledon in 2014. The players he might probably face in the second and third rounds would be Borna Coric and Philipp Kohlschreiber. However, his toughest battle will come in the fourth round where he might face Rafael Nadal or even 19-year old Alexander Zverev. While Nadal has been looking in good shape lately, Alexander Zverev is beginning to gradually elevate his game as he registered his second victory over Roger Federer during the Hopman Cup.There’s little probability of Monfils reaching his second Australian Open quarter-final this year but having played consistently last year, Monfils could still produce an upset or two.
#3. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga
The Frenchman made headlines by reaching the final of the Australian Open in 2008, beating Rafael Nadal in the semi-finals. Tsonga soon established himself as a formidable opponent and barring the US Open, he has reached at least the semi-finals of all three Grand Slams. However, Tsonga hasn’t been able to showcase his full potential partly due to the domination of the Big Four and partly due to his inconsistency during certain periods.Tsonga had a decent tour last year where he reached the semi-finals of the Monte-Carlo Masters and the quarter-finals of the Wimbledon and US Open in addition to three Masters 1000 tournaments. Tsonga’s only negative was his adductor injury which resulted in him retiring from his third round match at the French Open as a result of which, he could not defend his semi-final points from last year and subsequently his rankings dropped down from 7th to 12th.The Australian Open is Tsonga’s favorite Grand Slam tournament where he reached the final in 2008, the semi-finals in 2010, and the quarter-finals in 2009 and 2013. Last year, he reached the fourth round where he was defeated by Kei Nishikori in straight sets. This year, Tsonga is seeded 12th at the Australian Open and has been drawn in Section 4 of the main draw. Tsonga will begin his campaign against Thiago Monteiro and will be expected to win with ease.Tsonga’s first big challenge of the tournament will come in the third round where he would face Jack Sock who has had a good year so far, having won the Hopman Cup with Coco Vandeweghe and having reached the final of the Auckland Open. However, Tsonga’s unbeaten record against Sock makes him a firm favorite to take the match. Tsonga would then face a much bigger challenge in the fourth round where he would be up against Marin Cilic whom Tsonga last defeated in 2011.Although Cilic lost his first match of the year at the Chennai Open, the kind of form he has been in since the past couple of months makes him a pretty dangerous opponent. Nevertheless, Tsonga is bound to give him a tough fight and shouldn’t be much of a surprise if he manages to beat him.If Tsonga manages to reach the quarter-finals then he would face 2014 champion Stan Wawrinka who won the last three meetings between the two. Although Tsonga will not be expected to go further than the quarter-finals, a player with his attributes can never written and when he’s at the top of his game, he can be a match for any player.
#2. Tomas Berdych
There’s no doubt about the fact that Tomas Berdych is one of the finest tennis players of recent times as he has gotten the better of even the Big Four on several occasions. Berdych has reached at least the semi-finals of all four Grand Slams and had it not been for the presence of the Big Four, then Berdych would have definitely won a Grand Slam by now.Even though Berdych’s ranking fell from 6th to 10th last year, he had a pretty decent ATP World Tour where he reached at least the quarter-final of every Grand Slam he played. Berdych began 2017 by reaching the semi-finals of the Qatar ExxonMobil Open where he was beaten by Andy Murray in straight sets.The Australian Open has been Berdych’s most consistent Grand Slams as he has reached at least the quarter-finals in the last six editions of the tournament. However, there is a possibility that Berdych’s streak might come to an end as he has been handed a difficult draw.Berdych will have a cakewalk till the third round where he will face a fully fit Roger Federer who will be eager to make a comeback in his first Grand Slam since last year’s Wimbledon. Berdych last beat Federer back in 2013 and would be facing him for the first time in almost a year when Federer beat him in the quarter-finals here. Even if Berdych manages to scrape past Federer, he would be up against an in-form Kei Nishikori in the fourth round. Nonetheless, the kind of player Berdych is, we can always expect him to spring up a couple of surprises.
#1. David Ferrer
For a long, long time, David Ferrer has stayed under the shadow of the likes of Federer, Nadal, Murray, and Djokovic but he has still managed to pull off a number of brilliant performances against them and has reached the semi-finals of all four Grand Slams with a French Open final in 2013 being his best-ever Grand Slam performance.Last year, Ferrer had a very poor and inconsistent World Tour although he did have a decent start to the year by reaching the quarter-finals of the Australian Open. His lackluster performances resulted in his rankings falling from 8th to 21st. This year, Ferrer’s poor form persisted as he was ousted in the second round of the Auckland Open after losing to Dutchman Robin Hasse in three sets which led to his ranking dropping down to 23rd.The Australian Open has been one of Ferrer’s most consistent Grand Slam tournaments in the last six years with his best performances being reaching the semi-finals in 2011 and 2013 where he was beaten by Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic respectively.This year, Ferrer has been drawn in Section 6 of the main draw and will face local wildcard Omar Jasika in the first round. Ferrer will be expected to pass the opening two rounds but will have a tough opponent in the third round in fellow countryman Roberto Bautista Agut and even if he makes it past the third round, he will probably fall in the fourth round as he would be up against last year’s semi-finalist and third seed Milos Raonic.A lot may not be expected of Ferrer prior to the tournament but having seen him bounce back from a prolonged period of decline, it shouldn’t be much of a surprise if Ferrer goes further than expected.
