Australian Open 2023 draw: Nick Kyrgios cops brutal draw as Australian hopes fade

Nick Kyrgios and his compatriots, male and female, have been left reeling after the Australian Open draw. But that’s just the start... with blockbuster match-ups throughout the early rounds.

Nick Kyrgios will be seeded for this year’s Aus Open

Life was always going to be hard following on from Ash Barty’s heroics last year but it just got a whole lot worse after a draw wipeout for Australia’s best Open hopes.

In a horror 30 minutes on Thursday afternoon, Australia’s main four chances at Melbourne Park were handed a string of nightmare match-ups in the 2023 draw.

Any chance of a dream final involving Nick Kyrgios and Novak Djokovic, a repeat of last year’s Wimbledon epic, was quashed when the pair landed in the same quarter of the draw.

And then to make matters worse, Australia’s second best player Alex de Minaur ended up there as well.

The best case scenario has Kyrgios and Djokovic meeting in the quarter-finals. To get there, the Serbian superstar would have to cause some local pain given he faces De Minaur in the fourth round.

Nick Kyrgios has a disastrous path to Australian Open glory. Picture: AFP

Kyrgios has a rocky road to make it that far, starting with a sticky match-up with Russia’s world No.98 Roman Safullin followed by a second round clash with a Frenchman, either Richard Gasquet or Ugo Humbert who he struggled to get past in five sets in the second round in 2021.

Next looms No.9 seed Denmark’s Holger Rune before a potential fourth-round match-up with No.5 seed Andrey Rublev.

That’s tough with a capital T.

De Minaur starts his campaign with a qualifier but then faces a likely match with big-serving American John Isner in the second round. Spain’s 14th seed Pablo Carreno Busta looms in the third round before the potential showdown with Djokovic.

Alex de Minaur’s campaign gets tough quickly. Picture: AFP

Life for Thanasi Kokkinakis isn’t much better given he faces Italian veteran Fabio Fognini in the opening round before a second round appointment with either former world No,1 Andy Murray or 13th seed Matteo Berrettini who clash in a mouth-watering first round.

Talk about getting no favours for the locals.

Kyrgios has been dogged by bad draws in Melbourne. Last year he lost to No.2 seed Daniil Medvedev in the second round while in 2021 he copped No.3 seed Dominic Thiem in the third round.

In 2020 when he rolled into the fourth round he came up against a wall in the form of world No.1 Rafael Nadal.

He just needed some luck this year, in other words landing in the opposite half of the draw to Djokovic.

Kyrgios hasn’t had a lot of luck when the draw comes out in Melbourne over the years. Picture: Getty

That didn’t happen but if you thought Kyrgios’ scenario is tough to swallow, spare a thought for his former girlfriend and Barty’s successor Ajla Tomljanovic.

After just missing out on being seeded, Australia’s best female player landed in an awkward part of the draw starting with Argentine’s Nadia Podoroska.

Things get very messy in the second round where she will face a former Australian Open champion, either Sofia Kenin or Victoria Azarenka who clash in the pick of the women’s opening round matches.

American No.10 seed Madison Keys then awaits in the third round with Greece’s Maria Sakkari, a potential fourth round opponent.

While some of the other Aussies have a few winnable opening round encounters including Alexei Popyrin, Jordan Thompson, Jason Kubler, John Millman and Rinky Hijikata, the big picture is ugly.

Suddenly Ash and that magical January evening 12 months ago seems a very distant memory.

Nick Kyrgios’ projected Australian Open path

1R: Roman Safiullin

2R: Gasquet/Humbert

3R: (9) Rune

4R: (5) Rublev

QF: (4) Djokovic (or De Minaur?)

SF: (2) Ruud

F: (1) Nadal

Rafael Nadal will be looking to defend his Australian Open title. Picture: Getty

NADAL’S DREAM PATH TO GRAND SLAM NO.23

- LAUREN WOOD

Number one seed Rafael Nadal has a dream run towards the second week of the Australian Open as he prepares to defend his title at Melbourne Park.

The Spanish superstar has been drawn to face Brit Jack Draper in the opening round before what shapes as a fourth-round meeting with American 16th seed Frances Tiafoe, a quarter-final against last year’s final opponent Daniil Medvedev and a semi-final meeting with Greek third-seed Stefanos Tsitsipas.

Novak Djokovic could await in the final from the other side of the draw – or even Australian hope Nick Kyrgios should he progress to the second week and prevail over the Serbian star in a slated quarter-final.

Djokovic, who trained with heavy strapping on his left hamstring on Rod Laver Arena on Thursday as he continues to battle a hamstring complaint he sustained in Adelaide last week, will mark his competitive return to Melbourne since his sensational deportation ahead of last year’s tournament against Spain’s Roberto Carballes Baena.

Serbia's Novak Djokovic could await Nadal in the final in a fortnight. Picture: AFP

And 2014 champion Stan Wawrinka – who could meet sixth-seed Felix Auger-Aliassime in the second round – said Djokovic remained a deserving favourite for the title.

“He’s an amazing champion and is at the top of the game,” Wawrinka told News Corp this week.

“I did beat him a few times in a grand slam and it was always an amazing match.

“Of course he’s the favourite, because he has been playing so well. He won the first tournament (of the year), he’s going to be the big favourite.

“But there will be some tough matches for him, that’s for sure. There is a lot of tough players … from a fan’s view, it’s going to be a great tournament to watch.

Men’s seedings were adjusted for the draw on Thursday after 17th seed Marin Cilic withdrew from the tournament with a knee complaint.

Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov – seeded 27th – could await in the third round, before a potential semi-final against second-seed Casper Ruud.

Fan favourite Andy Murray will face 13th seed Matteo Berrettini. Picture: AFP

All opening round eyes will be on a heavyweight clash on Djokovic’s side of the draw, where triple-slam champion Andy Murray will face off with 13th seed Matteo Berrettini to kick off the tournament.

It’s not the only big battle brewing, with 2020 Australian Open finalist Dominic Thiem – who is a wildcard at this year’s event after missing last year’s event due to injury – faces fifth-seed Andrey Rublev.

The winner could meet Australian Nick Kyrgios in the fourth round.

Dimitrov meets Aslan Karatsev, while American Taylor Fritz is drawn to face Georgian Nikoloz Basilashvili.

Germany’s Alexander Zverev’s return to a grand slam after a lengthy injury lay-off starts against a qualifier with a fourth-round clash with Fritz potentially on the cards.

Ruud is on track to meet Berrettini in the fourth round before potential match-ups against Fritz and Djokovic or Kyrgios.

WOMEN’S DRAW: FORMER CHAMPS EARLY SHOWDOWN

- LAUREN WOOD

Two Australian Open champions will face off in the tournament’s opening round, but it’s a rising American that has caught the eye of experts as the first grand slam of 2023 looms large.

The only two previous champions in the women’s draw – Sofia Kenin and Victoria Azarenka – have been sensationally drawn to meet in the first round of the Australian Open which begins on Monday.

The women’s draw is without reigning champion Ash Barty (retired) and two-time champion Naomi Osaka, who announced her pregnancyon Thursday.

Victoria Azarenka will face fellow former champion Sofia Kenin. Picture: Getty

Last year’s finalist and 13th seed Danielle Collins – who fell short of Australian star Ash Barty in the 2022 decider – facesa difficult road to another shot at glory with a potential match-up against world No. 1 Iga Swiatek in the fourth round.

American Jessica Pegula – the tournament’s third seed – could meet Swiatek in the semi-final.

But she shouldn’t be discounted from going all the way to the event’s final Saturday, according to Australian Billie JeanCup team captain Alicia Molik.

“I think Jessica Pegula is probably one of the sneakies (chances) for this tournament,” Molik said at the draw on Thursdayafternoon.

“She’s a player who I have incredible respect for. She no doubt got her team through to the final of the United Cup and hadthem win that particular match.

“I really feel like, too, she’s got the mental fortitude. She’s pretty relaxed on court. I really feel like she can be herelate in the stages here at the Australian Open.”

Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka – who is seeded fifth and in blistering form to start the year as she hunts her first grand slamtitle - and two-time slam winner Garbine Muguruza are also in the same section of the draw, which also includes second seedOns Jabeur.

Australian Kimberley Birrell drew Estonian Kaia Kanepi, seeded 31st, while fourth seed Caroline Garcia will meet a qualifierin the opening round.

Eleventh-seed Spaniard Paula Badosa drew American Caty McNally, with Badosa having prevailed in their only previous meeting.

RECAP OUR BLOG LEADING INTO THE DRAW BELOW

Binoculars at the ready because nobody can see anything in this draw, again they have the format all wrong, a terrible fan experience. You can’t see names on the live stream and it’s all rather unclear.

Trying to see the Australian Open draw in the press conference room pic.twitter.com/K7EMR2d9e2

— Stuart Fraser (@stu_fraser) January 12, 2023

Feel like I'm at the opticians trying to read the very small print of the draw but I think Raducanu has drawn Tamara Korpatsch, with Coco Gauff a potential second-round opponent. Swiatek gets Wimbledon quarter-finalist Jule Niemeier

— Eleanor Crooks (@EleanorcrooksPA) January 12, 2023

Aussies in the AO Women’s draw:

🇦🇺 [WC] O.Gadecki VS Q/LL
🇦🇺 [WC] T.Gibson VS Q/LL
🇦🇺 [WC] S.Hunter VS https://t.co/6pfwpJMqia 🇨🇳
🇦🇺 A.Tomljanovic VS N.Podoroska 🇦🇷
🇦🇺 [WC] J.Fourlis VS L.Fruhvirtova 🇨🇿
🇦🇺 [WC] K.Birrell VS [31] K.Kanepi 🇪🇪 #TheFirstServe

— The First Serve (@TheFirstServeAU) January 12, 2023

3PM DRAW IS MINUTES AWAY

We now endure the usually fluff, montages and preamble when all we want is the draw.

No players at this year’s draw - breaking away from the pre-Covid tradition of defending champions delivering thr trophies.

Elsewhere, Pat Cash says he has little to no expectation that Nick Kyrgios will do much this tournament - which is harsh to say the least.

“Not much,” Cash said in response to what expectations he has surrounding Kyrgios on SEN Sportsday.

“Without much preparation, I think he’s going to struggle with limited preparation.

“When I say not much, I think we’re maybe putting high expectations on him, we expect him in the second week of Grand Slam tournaments.

“That would be the absolute minimum he would think is satisfying and we think it’s the same thing.

“If he gets through to the second week, I think it’d be a bloody good effort.”

2:32PM STAR OUT OF AUS OPEN

Marin Cilic has withdrawn from the Australian Open with a right knee injury.

Botic Van de Zandschulp moves into the seedings at No.32.

Croatia's Marin Cilic returns the ball during the men's singles semifinal

2:30PM FIVE WOMEN TO WATCH

IGA SWIATEK - The 21-year-old seized her opportunity after the retirement of Barty to dominate 2022, securing eight WTA titles and becoming the first woman in six years to win two Grand Slams in the same season -- at Roland Garros and New York.

After losing the Australian Open semi-final to Danielle Collins, Poland’s Swiatek did not look back.

She lifted the trophy in Doha a month later to kick-start an incredible 37-match winning streak that only ended in the third round at Wimbledon five months later.

Swiatek began this year’s Australian Open build-up with three straight-sets victories in the United Cup.

But a 6-2, 6-2 defeat to Jessica Pegula in the semi-final left Swiatek in tears, complaining she felt “helpless” and unable to show up “physically and mentally”.

- ONS JABEUR - The Tunisian world number two appears to be on the cusp of a Grand Slam breakthrough, having been runner-up at Wimbledon and the US Open last year.

The 28-year-old has set herself a 2023 target of toppling Swiatek from the number one ranking and becoming the first Arab and African woman to win a Slam.

Late bloomer Jabeur was 26 when she lifted her maiden WTA title in 2021 at Birmingham, adding Madrid and Berlin trophies last year.

“I’m not someone that’s going to give up,” vowed Jabeur after losing the US Open final to Swiatek.

- JESSICA PEGULA - The 28-year-old world number three comes into Melbourne Park after starring for the victorious USA team at the United Cup, where she won four of her five matches and beat Swiatek.

Pegula, whose parents are the billionaire owners of the Buffalo Bills NFL franchise, reached the Australian Open quarter-finals in 2021 and last year, where she was outclassed by a rampant Barty.

With Barty out of the way she could prove the biggest challenge to Swiatek. The easy-going Pegula admitted last year to spending time relaxing at the blackjack table in a Melbourne casino.

- ARYNA SABALENKA - The explosive Belarusian promised she would be up for a “big fight” at the Australian Open after winning in Adelaide this month for the 11th WTA title of her career.

The 24-year-old left-hander sprung back into form last season, reaching the semi-final at the US Open and the WTA Tour finals championship match, where she lost to Caroline Garcia.

Sabalenka can suffer hugely from nerves, which were all too obvious at her two season-opening tournaments in Australia last year when she was reduced to tears as her serve collapsed.

- COCO GAUFF - The 18-year-old American goes into Melbourne Park on a high after winning her third WTA title at the Auckland Classic this month.

The world number seven first won hearts as a 15-year-old in 2019 at Wimbledon when she arrived as a qualifier and reached the last 16, beating five-time champion Venus Williams along the way.

Her exploits sparked “Coco Mania” and she went on to win her first WTA title that year with her second coming in 2021, a year in which she beat Barty in Rome.

Last year her upward trajectory gathered pace as she reached her first Grand Slam final, losing to Swiatek at Roland Garros.

EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE DRAW

Osaka, who has not played since September joins Carlos Alcaraz and Venus Williams on the casualty list.

Simona Halep, currently serving a ban for a failed doping test, will not be in Melbourne and neither will Venus Williams who recently handed back a wildcard for the opening slam of the year.

Nick Kyrgios has withdrawn from lead up tournaments citing injury while a cloud also hangs over Rafa Nadal, Iga Swiatek and Emma Raducanu.

Given Alcaraz’s absence, defending champion Nadal goes into the tournament as the men’s top seed while Swiatek - if fit - will be the women’s No 1.

Novak Djokovic returns to Melbourne Park looking to secure an unprecedented 10th Aus Open title.

Twelve months on from his infamous deportation saga, the Serbian made a winning return to Australia after saving a match point en route to claiming the Adelaide International title in a 6-7 (8), 7-6 (3), 6-4 victory over American Sebastian Korda.

Before his opening clash in Melbourne, Djokovic will play a charity match against Australia’s Nick Kyrgios on Friday at 6:30PM AEDT.

MULLET MAN ON BRINK OF SINGLES BERTH

- LAUREN WOOD

The most famous mullet in Australian tennis is on the brink of a second Australian Open main draw berth.

Wimbledon doubles champion Max Purcell defeated Bosnian Damir Dzumhur to reach the final round of Australian Open qualifying, with the 6-4 7-5 victory what the world No. 204 is hopeful is a key step towards playing at Melbourne Park from Monday.

“It’d be great to get another Aussie into the main draw,” Purcell said.

“I think I’m playing OK.

“It’s not far fetched to see myself in a main draw, particularly in Australia, I don’t think.”

Max Purcell is on the verge of making the Australian Open singles draw. Picture: Getty

Purcell said he believed “95 per cent of the match was played on my terms”.

“I had a lot of chances to make that a bit more than a single break in the first and the second sets,” he said.

“It took some closing out. I actually think I served the right way on those match points, he just picked it correctly.”

It proved a gruelling day for Australians in the qualifying draw, with Alex Bolt, Marc Polmans, Dane Sweeny and Li Tu all eliminated from the men’s draw.

Astra Sharma and Ellen Perez were both defeated in the women’s draw.

Victorian Destanee Aiava fell narrowly short, eliminated in a super tiebreak in what had hoped to be a fairytale return to tennis.

AUSTRALIAN OPEN 2023 MEN’S SEEDS

1. Rafael Nadal

2. Casper Ruud

3. Stefanos Tsitsipas

4. Novak Djokovic

5. Andrey Rublev

6. Felix Auger-Aliassime

7. Daniil Medvedev

8. Taylor Fritz

9. Holger Rune

10. Hubert Hurkacz

11. Cameron Norrie

12. Alexander Zverev

13. Matteo Berrettini

14. Pablo Carreno Busta

15. Jannik Sinner

16. Frances Tiafoe

17. Marin Cilic

18. Lorenzo Musetti

19. Karen Khachanov

20. Nick Kyrgios

21. Denis Shapovalov

22. Borna Coric

23. Alex de Minaur

24. Diego Schwartzman

25. Roberto Bautista Agut

26. Dan Evans

27. Miomir Kecmanovic

28. Grigor Dimitrov

29. Francisco Cerundolo

30. Sebasitian Korda

31. Alejandro Davidovich Fokina

32. Yoshihito Nishioka

AUSTRALIAN OPEN 2023 WOMEN’S SEEDS

1. Iga Swiatek

2. Ons Jabeur

3. Jessica Pegula

4. Caroline Garcia

5. Aryna Sabalenka

6. Maria Sakkari

7. Coco Gauff

8. Daria Kasatkina

9. Veronika Kudermetova

10. Madison Keys

11. Paula Badosa

12. Belinda Bencic

13. Danielle Collins

14. Beatriz Haddad Maia

15. Petra Kvitova

16. Anett Kontaveit

17. Jelena Ostapenko

18. Liudmila Samsonova

19. Ekaterina Alexandrova

20. Barbora Krejcikova

21. Martina Trevisan

22. Elena Rybakina

23. Zhang Shuai

24. Victoria Azarenka

25. Maria Bouzkova

26. Elise Mertens

27. Irina-Camelia Begu

28. Amanda Anisimova

29. Zheng Qinwen

30. Karolina Pliskova

31. Kaia Kanepi

32. Jil Teichmann

Originally published as Australian Open 2023 draw: Nick Kyrgios cops brutal draw as Australian hopes fade