The Australian Open draw is out, and so is The Tennis Podcast, dissecting and previewing what is to come over the next fortnight.
Catherine Whitaker is in the UK to present the tournament’s Highlights Show on Eurosport, David Law is in Melbourne for BBC Radio 5 Live, and so is the Telegraph’s correspondent Simon Briggs.
Andy Murray was drawn in the opposite half of the draw to Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer, meaning he can only face one of them. According to Simon Briggs, Murray has the ideal draw. It’s not just an opinion, Briggs has crunched the numbers.
‘Mathematically, Murray has the perfect draw,” Briggs tells The Tennis Podcast.
“He is scheduled play lowest possible seed in all four rounds leading up to the final (R3 - No.32 Joao Sousa, R4 - No.16 Bernard Tomic, QF - No.8 David Ferrer, SF - No.4 Stan Wawrinka). The odds of that happening are 256-1. He had some rough draws last year, but if he doesn’t do well this time we certainly can not blame the draw - he’s got the dream route to the final! Yes, he would have to play Stan Wawrinka if they both got that far, but he would prefer that to playing against Roger Federer.
Meanwhile, the team reminisce about Marcos Baghdatis, who charged to the final ten years ago, and Lleyton Hewitt, who is playing his 20th Australian Open and the final tournament of his glorious career.
Victoria Azarenka continues to be backed for the women’s title, and Briggs describes the body language of Serena Williams in her pre-tournament press conference.
Coming soon: The Tennis Podcast predictions
The Tennis Podcast is produced in association with The Telegraph.
