The draw for the first major Grand Slam of the year -- Australian Open -- was released at Melbourne Park on Friday.
In the men's competition, Novak Djokovic looks like he has received a fairly decent draw, but having said that, he needs to put up a good display to increase his chances of winning the competition.
The Serbian will play his first match against a qualifier, which is expected to be an easy enough outing, while his rival, Roger Federer will face Yen-Hsun Lu of Chinese Taipei. But, it is Nadal, who seems to have got the toughest draw for the first round, as he is set to play Russian veteran Mikhail Youzhny.
Luckily, Djokovic is on the other side of the draw where he is not expected to meet Nadal, Federer or Andy Murray, but could face the defending champion, Stanislas Wawrinka, in the run up to the final. The Serbian might also end up playing Spain's Fernando Verdasco in the third round.
As of now, Wawrinkna seems to be Djokovic's biggest test prior to the final.
It is a whole different story for the second seed, Federer, who might meet Andy Murray in the quarterfinals of the competition and Nadal in the semis. It is a difficult draw for the Swiss number one, who hasn't won the Australian Open since his triumph in 2010.
With players like Juan Martin del Potro unseeded, it would not be a surprise if he can create some major upsets by defeating seeded players.
In the women's section, Maria Sharapova has received an easy draw, where she will play against Zarina Diyas of Kazakhstan in the first round. but Eugenie Bouchard, Agnieszka Radwanska and Simona Halep could prove to be major obstacles later in the competition.
Serena Williams seems to have got a tough draw, where she could face former world No. 2 Vera Zvonareva in the second round. If she progresses further, she could face Caroline Wozniacki, Petra Kvitova or Agnieszka Radwanska as well.
Already, there is a sense of expectations for 2015 Australian Open to be a major success and with Australian Open official Twitter account making some potential quarterfinal match ups, the Major can only benefit.
Potential QF match-ups Djokovic v Raonic Wawrinka v Nishikori Berdych v Nadal Murray v Federer
— Australian Open (@AustralianOpen) January 16, 2015
Potential QF match-ups: Serena v Wozniacki Kvitova v Radwanska Ivanovic v Halep Bouchard v Sharapova — Australian Open (@AustralianOpen) January 15, 2015
