After seeing him come back in two 5-set matches in the first two rounds, you can’t help but wonder: Will Andy Murray win the Australian Open?
Will Andy Murray win the Australian Open?
This headline might age badly if he loses his next match to Bautista-Agut. But you still have to applaud and respect the lion of a fighter that Andy Murray is. In 2020 he was at the Australian Open to retire from professional tennis due to a hip injury. But with a new hip, he has fought himself back into enough form to defeat players like Matteo Berrettini and Thanasi Kokkinakis on the biggest stage in tennis. That made Dennis and I ponder whether he will win the first grand slam of the year now that he has Ivan Lendl back on his team. It’s improbable, but a dark horse bet. You can listen to our latest podcast episode dealing with the biggest events of the Australian Open so far.
But the Andy Murray win wasn’t the only drama at the Australian Open. Djokovic had an injury scare against a French qualifier, lost a set, and looked almost ready to give up the match at one set all. But Djokovic has performed seemingly miraculous comebacks from injury doubts before, and this time was no different. He rolled his French opponent like a baguette 6-2 6-0. How this injury will affect his chances is impossible to say. He looked down and out in the second set, but in the last two sets, he was kind of back to normal.
More upsets at the Australian Open 2023…
American Michael Mmoh has long-time been hailed as a big talent but has struggled to reach his potential in recent years. Against Alexander Zverev, he didn’t think twice, though, and took the biggest win of his career. Another American, Jenson Brooksby, defeated 2nd seed Casper Ruud, and Sebastian Korda defeated Medvedev in straight sets! This is not your typically predictable GOAT-era Grand Slam. The next-gen is finally here.
A few other Americans worth mentioning. Ben Shelton is through, Jeffrey John Wolf beat Schwartzman, while Tiafoe and Fritz are out.
Ons out
The women’s draw has been more predictable. The biggest upset so far is Ons Jabeur’s loss to Vondrousova, but otherwise it has been pretty plain sailing for the seeds.
It’s easier to predict the women’s championship than the men’s these days. It used to be reversed. This is how tennis keeps moving.
Are you watching and who do you think will win?
