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Carlos Alcaraz and Aryna Sabalenka are the top seeds ahead of the Australian Open main draw, with Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek the second seeds.
Alcaraz and Sinner could become the first men to play in four consecutive grand slam finals since Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal did so between 2011 and 2012. Alcaraz is bidding for his first Australian Open title – which would make the youngest man of all time to complete the career grand slam – while Sinner is on for a hat-trick of titles in Melbourne.
Sabalenka, the US Open champion, and Swiatek, the Wimbledon champion, have yet to meet in a grand slam final. Swiatek is also an Australian Open title away from completing the career grand slam while Sabalenka will be out to regain her crown after a shock defeat to Madison Keys in last year’s final.
Elsewhere, Coco Gauff comes into the opening grand slam of the year as the fourth seed, with defending champion Keys seventh on the women’s side. Djokovic, the record 10-time champion in Melbourne, will be seeded fourth on the men’s side and would expect to face one of Alcaraz or Sinner in the semi-finals if he gets there.
Venus Williams, 45, is set to become the oldest woman to compete in the Australian Open main draw after the seven-time grand slam singles champion accepted a wildcard.
Here’s everything you need to know
When is the Australian Open draw?
The draw will take place on Thursday 15 January at 2:30pm local time, which is 3:30am UK time. The final round of qualifying also takes place on Thursday 15 January.
Women’s seeds and confirmed entry list
Provisional seeding – based on ranking points as of Monday 5 January
1. Aryna Sabalenka, Belarus, 10490
2. Iga Swiatek, Poland, 8178
3. Amanda Anisimova, USA, 6287
4. Coco Gauff, USA, 6273
5. Elena Rybakina, Kazakhstan, 5850
6. Jessica Pegula, USA, 5583
7. Madison Keys, USA, 4335
8. Jasmine Paolini, Italy, 4236
9. Mirra Andreeva, Russia, 4125
10. Ekaterina Alexandrova, Russia, 3375
11. Belinda Bencic, Switzerland, 3097
12. Linda Noskova, Czechia, 2641
13. Elina Svitolina, Ukraine, 2606
14. Clara Tauson, Denmark, 2530
15. Emma Navarro, USA, 2515
16. Naomi Osaka, Japan, 2334
17. Liudmila Samsonova, Russia, 2209
18. Victoria Mboko, Canada, 2157
19. Elise Mertens, Belgium, 1969
20. Karolina Muchova, Czechia, 1888
21. Diana Shnaider, Russia, 1866
22. Leylah Fernandez, Canada, 1821
23. Jelena Ostapenko, Latvia, 1800
24. Paula Badosa, Spain, 1675
25. Marta Kostyuk, Ukraine, 1659
26. Dayana Yastremska, Ukraine, 1604
27. Sofia Kenin, USA, 1589
28. Emma Raducanu, Great Britain, 1563
29. Veronika Kudermetova, Russia, 1558
30. McCartney Kessler, USA, 1553
31. Maya Joint, Australia, 1539
32. Anna Kalinskaya, Russia, 1461
—————————————————-
Marketa Vondrousova
Iva Jovic
Lois Boisson
Daria Kasatkina
Ann Li
Jaqueline Cristian
Eva Lys
Karolina Pliskova
Jessica Bouzas Maneiro
Marie Bouzkova
Sorana Cirstea
Ashlyn Krueger
Tatjana Maria
Laura Siegemund
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
Katerina Siniakova
Emiliana Arango
Anastasia Potapova
Maria Sakkari
Alexandra Eala
Janice Tjen
Cristina Bucsa
Magda Linette
Xinyu Wang
Beatriz Haddad Maia
Magdalena Frech
Elsa Jacquemot
Tereza Valentova
Hailey Baptiste
Anna Blinkova
Peyton Stearns
Barbora Krejcikova
Solana Sierra
Olga Danilovic
Viktorija Golubic
Sonay Kartal
Donna Vekic
Yulia Putintseva
Yafan Wang
Rebecca Sramkova
Antonia Ruzic
Francesca Jones
Anna Bondar
Varvara Gracheva
Camila Osorio
Renata Zarazua
Ajla Tomljanovic
Elisabetta Cocciaretto
Petra Marcinko
Caty McNally
Ella Seidel
Alycia Parks
Simona Waltert
Shuai Zhang
Elena-Gabriela Ruse
Suzan Lamens
Lulu Sun
Panna Udvardy
Sara Bejlek
Katie Volynets
Moyuka Uchijima
Julia Grabher
Oleksandra Oliynykova
Kamilla Rakhimova
Kimberly Birrell
Dalma Galfi
Oksana Selekhmeteva
Mananchaya Sawangkaew
Darja Semenistaja
Kaja Juvan
Leolia Jeanjean
Absentees
Qinwen Zheng, Ons Jabeur and Danielle Collins
Wildcards
Eight wildcards and 16 qualifiers will complete the 128-player field. The confirmed wildcards are:
- Emerson Jones (AUS)
- Zarina Diyas (KAZ)
- Elizabeth Mandlik (USA)
- Tiantsoa Sarah Rakotomanga Rajaonah (FRA)
- Priscilla Hon (AUS)
- Talia Gibson (AUS)
- Taylah Preston (AUS)
- Venus Williams (USA)
What to watch out for in the draw
British No 1 Emma Raducanu is seeded at the Australian Open, which means she cannot play another seed until the third round. However, if she gets there she could face any of the top eight, so will hope to avoid landing in the same section as the likes of Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek.
Two-time Australian Open champion Naomi Osaka, 16th, would be a dangerous fourth-round draw for one of the top seeds. As for the unseeded players, former grand slam champions Marketa Vondrousova and Barbora Krejickova had good runs at the US Open and could be dangerous floaters in the draw, while Daria Kasatkina and Maria Sakkari could also be ones to avoid as they look to bounce back from difficult years.
Also, look out for Venus Williams’s first-round opponent as she accepts a wildcard at the age of 45.
Men’s seeds and confirmed entry list
Provisional seeding – based on ranking points as of Monday 5 January
1. Carlos Alcaraz, Spain, 12050
2. Jannik Sinner, Italy, 11500
3. Alexander Zverev, Germany, 5105
4. Novak Djokovic, Serbia, 4780
5. Felix Auger-Aliassime, Canada, 4190
6. Alex de Minaur, Australia, 4080
7. Lorenzo Musetti, Italy, 3990
8. Ben Shelton, USA, 3960
9. Taylor Fritz, USA, 3840
10. Alexander Bublik, Kazakhstan, 2845
11. Casper Ruud, Norway, 2750
12. Daniil Medvedev, Russia, 2710
13. Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, Spain, 2585
14. Andrey Rublev, Russia, 2510
15. Karen Khachanov, Russia, 2320
16. Jakub Mensik, Czechia, 2130
17. Jiri Lehecka, Czechia, 2075
18. Tommy Paul, USA, 2050
19. Francisco Cerundolo, Argentina, 2035
20. Flavio Cobolli, Italy, 1955
21. Denis Shapovalov, Canada, 1665
22. Luciano Darderi, Italy, 1579
23. Tallon Griekspoor, Netherlands, 1565
24. Learner Tien, USA, 1540
25. Arthur Rinderknech, France, 1527
26. Cameron Norrie, Great Britain, 1523
27. Joao Fonseca, Brazil, 1510
28. Frances Tiafoe, USA, 1485
29. Valentin Vacherot, Monaco, 1469
30. Corentin Moutet, France, 1383
31. Brandon Nakashima, USA, 1380
32. Stefanos Tsitsipas, Greece, 1380
————————————————-
Corentin Moutet
Jaume Munar
Ugo Humbert
Alex Michelsen
Lorenzo Sonego
Gabriel Diallo
Alexandre Muller
Zizou Bergs
Grigor Dimitrov
Sebastian Baez
Daniel Altmaier
Nuno Borges
Sebastian Korda
Camilo Ugo Carabelli
Reilly Opelka
Fabian Marozsan
Miomir Kecmanovic
Jenson Brooksby
Alexei Popyrin
Marton Fucsovics
Matteo Berrettini
Juncheng Shang
Damir Dzumhur
Valentin Royer
Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard
Tomas Martin Etcheverry
Zhizhen Zhang
Francisco Comesana
Aleksandar Kovacevic
Matteo Arnaldi
Kamil Majchrzak
Terence Atmane
Marcos Giron
Arthur Cazaux
Gael Monfils
Adrian Mannarino
Ethan Quinn
Jacob Fearnley
Mariano Navone
Hubert Hurkacz
Mattia Bellucci
Marin Cilic
Jesper De Jong
Botic Van De Zandschulp
Adam Walton
Filip Misolic
Cristian Garin
Alejandro Tabilo
Aleksandar Vukic
Hamad Medjedovic
Emil Ruusuvuori
Jan-Lennard Struff
Thanasi Kokkinakis
Juan Manuel Cerundolo
Raphael Collignon
Luca Nardi
Emilio Nava
Pablo Carreno Busta
Dalibor Svrcina
Eliot Spizzirri
Quentin Halys
Roberto Bautista Agut
Shintaro Mochizuki
Pedro Martinez
Benjamin Bonzi
Alexander Shevchenko
Hugo Gaston
Laslo Djere
Tristan Schoolkate
Thiago Agustin Tirante
Vit Kopriva
Carlos Taberner
Absentees
Jack Draper, Arthur Fils, Holger Rune
Wildcards
Eight wildcards and 16 qualifiers will complete the 128-player field. The confirmed wildcards are:
- James Duckworth (AUS)
- Bu Yunchaokete (CHN)
- Patrick Kypson (USA)
- Kyrian Jacquet (FRA)
- Rinky Hijikata (AUS)
- Stan Wawrinka (SUI)
- Jordan Thompson ( AUS)
- Chris O’Connell (AUS)
What to watch out for in the draw
Novak Djokovic’s projected quarter-final is always interesting, given it’s the last match before he would likely have to play one of Carlos Alcaraz or Jannik Sinner. Felix Auger-Aliassime would be difficult, Alex de Minaur, who so badly wants a first semi-final at home, could be fun, Ben Shelton, if he stays fit and gets there, could be explosive.
Flavio Cobolli, fresh from his Davis Cup exploits for Italy, could trouble one of the top players in the fourth round. Learner Tien and Joao Fonseca, a year on from their breakout runs at the Australian Open, would also be a tricky draw for any of the high seeds. Fonseca has yet to play Alcaraz or Sinner but could be drawn against them in round three.
As for the unseeded players, Grigor Dimitrov, who is back from the injury that forced him to retire during his Wimbledon quarter-final against Sinner and miss the US Open, is perhaps the most dangerous floater in the draw, or former Australian Open quarter-final Hubert Hurkacz, who is also returning from injury.