Tennis is a sport which does not get much sleep. As soon as the December ATP finals in London brought down the curtains on one tennis campaign, preparation is already being made amongst the players for this year ‘s events and in particular, the Australian Open scheduled to take place from January 16 to 29, 2012, in Melbourne at Melbourne Park – the first Grand Slam event of the calendar.
And the 2012 renewal looks set to pick things up from exactly where the action was left in 2011 as Novak Djokovic bids to defend his crown at Melbourne Park.
The super Serb defeated all his opponents in 2011 on his way to the World’s No.1 spot.
Djokovic will be a solid favourite to retain his title in what should be a special tournament considering that 2012 will celebrate 100 years of Aussie Open tennis.
But main rivals Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Andy Murray will all be seeking to gun him down and gain revenge for being completely outclassed over the past twelve months.
Nadal of course initiated a brief riposte on his favourite surface at Roland Garros, but even that came on the back of three consecutive defeats to Djokovic on clay.
The Spanish ace finished 2011 in a laboured fashion, exiting the World Tour Finals at the group stage after being crushed by Federer in straight sets.
Already, critics are beginning to write off the Mallorcan who they feel may now be on the decline having enjoyed his peak at a very young age. Premature prediction perhaps, but whether the doubters are proved correct or not, it will be interesting to see how Nadal bounces back in the new year and whether he can get his hands on another Grand Slam title.
Sixteen-time- grand slam winner, Roger Federer, finished off 2011 in grand style having faced with the wrath of the media earlier in the year.
The Swiss fell short on the big stage as it appeared age was creeping up with him; however he powered to success at the ATP Finals to reclaim the World No.3 spot and put himself back in the bigger picture.
Andy Murray briefly held the World No.3 spot at Federer’s expense until he was forced to withdraw from the London showpiece with injury.
The Scot undoubtedly pushed himself to the limit in 2011 and would reflect on a strong campaign after reaching the semi-final in all four majors.
But still, the Dunblane Dynamo remains a Grand Slam maiden and he will be adamant to finally record a Grand Slam title in order to cement his status as Britain’s best player of the open era.
For many, honours in Australia would be fought for by the aforementioned quartet – but the proverbial dark horse could well emerge in the shape of Juan Martin Del Potro.
Very much, the forgotten man with regards to the ATP’s elite band of players, the Argentine has been steadily recovering from a damaging wrist injury which left him out on the side lines for a prolonged period of time.
After getting back to winning ways, the 2009 US Open champion has done much to rectify his plummeting ranking and has forced his way back into the top twenty.
He will be a crucial part of Argentina’s Davis Cup final team and assuming he can attain optimum fitness for the New Year, Del Potro could easily get back in the thick of things.
The Australian Open, as ever, will be a huge betting event and a highly entertaining prospect as the Men’s tour continues to get stronger.
It should also provide a plethora of information and guidance as to how the rest of 2012 could pan out.
Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal are eyeing a confidence – boosting victory at the season – opening Qatar Open while Novak Djokovic, elsewhere in the Persian Gulf, is already showing signs that made him such a force in 2011.Djokovic wrapped up his first title in Abu Dhabi last weekend and said he is feeling better than he did at this time last season. That does not bode well for the No. 2 Nadal and No. 3 Federer. After all, the top-ranked Djokovic won three Grand Slams on his way to a 70-6 record.
Nadal, who lost to Djokovic in the U.S. Open and Wimbledon finals in 2011, said expectations for the Serb are clear. “Everybody thinks that Djokovic will be difficult to beat, no?” Nadal said. “Not just myself.”
Nadal suggested that, for now, he has come to terms with being No. 2. “You know in the sport … you cannot be every time in the top,” he said. “I think I played fantastic for seven, eight months in the 2011 season.
“I lost against Djokovic in all the finals, but I almost only lost against him. So that’s a really positive thing, play almost every final in all the difficult and important tournaments.”
Nadal lost to Djokovic in six finals in 2011 and wouldn’t say whether he can reverse the trend. The Spaniard has said he felt his tennis in 2011 at times was too predictable. He has started using a heavier racket to increase his power. His preparations for the season have been curtailed by a left shoulder injury that he says has healed. “The only thing I know is I have to practice to improve my tennis. For the rest of my career, I don’t know if that’s going to be enough to beat him (Djokovic) or to lose to him 100 more times,” Nadal said.
“I don’t even know, but I cannot predict that,” he added. “What I can predict is I (am) going to work hard to try to be enough competitive to play with good chances against everybody, not only against him because the first thing, you have to be in the finals. That’s a very difficult thing to do, not only win that once.”
Federer, too, couldn’t avoid questions about Djokovic, who beat the Swiss in the Abu Dhabi exhibition tournament last week. He lost to Djokovic in the Australian Open and U.S. Open but exacted some revenge at the French Open semifinals by ending Djokovic’s 43-match winning streak. “He was definitely the most consistent player of this last year, and he looks like he’s in good shape again for this upcoming season,” Federer said.
“So it’s obviously someone who is going to be followed very closely not just by the media but also by the players,” he said. “I think we’re also all feeling pretty well, as well, so it’s going to be interesting for all of us to see who’s going to have the best start to the season.”
As for the chances of regaining the top ranking or winning another major this season, the 16-time Grand Slam champion said it was too early to make bold predictions.”You have to go step by step, “ Federer said.
“Then I do hope I can move on and defend my title here and then go to sort of Australia and make my move over there,” he added. “Then I have a lot coming up in February, as well, for me. So it’s going to be an interesting next two months for me because I will be playing a lot of tennis. So I hope that I will hold up well physically.”