Before each day's play Down Under, TENNIS.com editor Ed McGrogan will pick his three must-see matches.
Caroline Wozniacki [1] vs. Gisela Dulko (Rod Laver Arena, second day match)
We like to find opening-round upsets in the brackets, and if Dulko can oust the No. 1 seed in round one, it would be a tournament’s worth of shock. Or would it? The veteran Argentine is ranked No. 52, so she’s one of the better unseeded players, and has proven that she can hang with the upper echelon—Dulko upset No. 10 Victoria Azarenka in the first round of last year’s French Open. As for Wozniacki, this is the first of potentially six “no-win” matches. She could reach the final without dropping a game and the same question we ask now would still hold: Can Wozniacki win a Grand Slam title? It’s a no-win situation, but she’ll get the win today.
The Pick: Wozniacki in two sets.
Yanina Wickmayer [21] vs. Jarmila Groth (Rod Laver Arena, first night match)
This is another nice first-round women’s match and should live up to its nighttime billing. Wickmayer finished runner-up in Auckland this month and, on short rest, played Sam Stosur tough in Sydney (losing 7-5, 6-4). Groth already has a title this year, in Hobart, and she’ll have something else of importance – the crowd support. The Aussie didn’t win a match at last year’s Aussie Open, but she won three at both Roland Garros and Wimbledon. The big-match player should get her first main-draw win in Melbourne tonight.
The pick: Groth in two sets.
Grigor Dimitrov vs. Andrey Golubev (Court 10, third match)
You’ve probably heard of Dimitrov—the 19-year-old, once highly-touted junior from Bulgaria—before, and he could signal his pro arrival with his first main-draw win at a major. He’s already won three qualifying matches, the first two with ease and the second a valiant 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-1 comeback against Thomas Schoorel. Now he gets another tough test, the rapidly-improving Andrey Golubev. The Kazakh zoomed up nearly 100 ranking places over the course of 2010 and is one of the top unseeded men. You won’t find this one on television, but if you’re on the grounds, I suggest you attend.
The pick: Golubev in four sets.
Honorable Mention: Mardy Fish [16] vs. Victor Hanescu (Court 3, second match)
Can the American keep his 2010 momentum going against the streaky Hanescu?
The pick: Fish in five sets.