Finally, we have a date! The Australian Open will start on the 8th of February in 2021. The first slam of the year was scheduled to take place on the 18th of January. However, a decision had to be taken to postpone a few weeks because of the Coronavirus pandemic. The energetic CEO of Tennis Australia, Craig Tiley, had the objective of allowing the tennis players to land in Australia by the mid of December to be quarantined and be ready to play some warm-up events before engaging in the Australian Open. However, that was not possible and eventually our “tennis heroes” will have the chance to arrive in Australia only by the middle of January.
What about the quarantine?
The tennis players will have to observe 14 days of quarantine. They will have the opportunity to practice to keep their fitness. Then they may decide to compete in a warm-up event right before the Australian Open.
Of course, the ATP and the WTA calendars will be revised. There is a faint possibility that Doha and Dubai’s tournaments will be played before the “Australian stint.” However, these are just speculations.
Who are the favorites?
According to top tennis website bet365, the top favorites are Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal on the men’s’ side, while Naomi Osaka and Serena Williams are in pole position on the women’s.
Check the updated quotes.
Click here to see the updated quotes and free live streaming (only selected countries – USA excluded).
Here where top tennis events are broadcasted or streamed online (ATP, WTA).
At the challenger level, there will be free live streaming on Challenger TV.
Novak Djokovic in 2020
Ranked no.1, Djokovic played his last match on the 21st of November when he lost to Dominic Thiem 7-5 6-710 7-65 in the semifinal in the Nitto ATP Finals (draw).
At the moment, this season Djokovic has a composed 41-5 record. Djokovic clinched 4 titles in 2020 at the Australian Open, in Dubai, in New York and in Rome. Djokovic was the runner-up at the French Open.
Rafael Nadal in 2020
Ranked no.2, Nadal played his last match on the 21st of November when he lost to Daniil Medvedev 3-6 7-64 6-3 in the semifinal in the Nitto ATP Finals (draw).
During this season Rafael has a composed 27-7 record. Rafael conquered 2 titles in 2020 in Acapulco and at the French Open.
Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal played each other 56 times. The head to head is 29-27 for Djokovic. The last time that they squared off, Rafael Nadal won 6-0 6-2 7-5 in the final in Paris (French Open) on the 11th of October 2020.
Here the highlights.
Naomi Osaka in 2020
Currently ranked no.3, Naomi played her last match on the 12th of September when she overcame Victoria Azarenka 1-6 6-3 6-3 in the final of the U.S. Open to win her 6th career title.
At the moment, this season Naomi has a 16-3 record. Osaka has won 1 title at the U.S. Open. Osaka was the runner-up in New York.
Serena Williams in 2020
Ranked no.11, Serena was supposed to play on the 30th of September. However, she conceded a walk over to Tsvetana Pironkova in the 2nd round of the French Open (draw).
This season Serena has a 17-5 win-loss record. Serena conquered 1 title in Auckland.
Naomi Osaka and Serena Williams played each other 3 times. The head to head is 2-1 for Osaka. The last time that they played each other, Serena Williams won 6-3 6-4 in the quarter in Toronto (Rogers Cup) in August 2019.
You can watch the highlights in the following video.
