The 2024 Australian Open fires up on Sunday, which means it is time for me to write my 10 things to look for. Let's dive in! If you want to check out the draws, click here.
#1. Can Novak Djokovic defend his title? Novak Djokovic is the defending Australian Open champion on the men's side and the number one ranked player in the world. He has won the Australian Open 10 times and will be gunning for a 25th grand slam title, which would add to his already record total. Given that he is the best player in the world and also has had more success at the Australian Open than any other grand slam, he's the heavy favorite here. It's just a matter of him backing it up.
#2. Can Aryna Sabalenka defend her title? Aryna Sabalenka is the defending Australian Open champion on the women's side and is the number two ranked player in the world. Last year's Australian Open title is her lone grand slam title. She is coming into this tournament having reached the 2023 US Open final, so in the past two hard court slams, she has reached the final. That bodes well for her chances. I would be very surprised if we don't at least see her reach the semifinals.
#3. Can Carlos Alcaraz make a run? Carlos Alcaraz is the number two player in the world so on paper he should be favored to at least reach the final against Djokovic. That said, the furthest he has gone at the Australian Open is the 3rd round in 2022. He missed the event last year and so in many ways, this is his first Australian Open being ranked as high as he is. He won his first grand slam at the 2022 US Open and aside from missing the 2023 Australian Open has reached the semis of every grand slam since including winning it all at Wimbledon last year. Still, he hasn't done anything of real significance at the Australian Open yet.
#4. Can Coco Gauff make a run? Coco Gauff comes in ranked #4 in the world, fresh off her US Open title in 2023. She's a major contender to win the Australian Open in 2024. However, the furthest she has gone in the Australian Open is the 4th round in 2023 and 2020. It's been a bit of a challenge for her to make a run in this event. Will this year be different?
#5. Can Daniil Medvedev get back to his old form? Daniil Medvedev is ranked #3 in the world, but he's coming off a 2023 that was a mixed bag: A 3rd round exit at the Australian Open, a 1st round exit at the French Open, a run to the semifinals at Wimbledon, and a run to the final at the US Open. He's getting back to what he's been when you look at the last two grand slams. This year's Australian Open is huge for him in terms of continuing that momentum.
#6. Can Iga Świątek get one step closer to a career slam? It's about time I bring up the number one ranked player on the women's side: Iga Świątek. She has won three French Opens and also one US Open in 2022. As for the Australian Open, the furthest she has gone is the semifinals in 2022. Coming in as the number ranked player in the world, a lot of people will be putting down money on her to win it all. The question is can she win this event. She's shown she can win grand slams, especially French Opens. Now it's a matter of her showing she's a threat at every slam.
#7. Can Jannik Sinner back up his ranking? Jannik Sinner is ranked #4 in the world despite only having one grand slam semifinal appearance in his career at Wimbledon last year. Last year, he lost in the 4th round at the Australian Open and US Open while falling in the 2nd round at the French Open. It's time he starts to back up his ranking. If you are a top four player in the world, especially in this hard court dominant era, you can't be flaming out before the quarterfinals.
#8. Can Victoria Azarenka go the distance? Victoria Azarenka comes in as the #18 seed in the tournament. Of all the grand slams, the Australian Open has by far been her best event. She won back-to-back Aussie Open titles in 2012 & 2013 and reached the semifinals in 2023 when everyone thought she was past her prime. It would be fun to see her make another deep run this year.
#9. Will Alex de Minaur make Australia proud? Alex de Minaur is the top ranked Aussie on the men's side ranked #10 in the world. The furthest he's gone at a grand slam is the quarterfinals at the US Open in 2020. As for the Australian Open, he's reached the 4th round twice in 2022 & 2023, so he's had some success at his home country's slam. However, as the highest ranking Aussie man, he's gotta go deeper than that. If he can at least reach the quarterfinals, that'll be a successful run for him.
#10. How far will Caroline Wozniacki go? Caroline Wozniacki is back on tour, reaching the 4th round of the US Open in 2023. She had to get a wild card for this year's Australian Open, but now that she's gotten that wild card, she's looking to do some damage. In women's tennis anything can happen. I wouldn't be surprised at all to see her reach the 4th round or better. It'll be fun to see how she does.
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