A brand new tennis season will soon get underway in less than a week, and for tennis fans, a scratchpad is handy at this time of the year.
The 2024 Australian Open will start on January 14, and it is time to make some early predictions on who will win the tournament. Historically, the Melbourne Slam has been a one-man tournament.
But in the past decade, it has also been a tournament that has conjured surprises and crowned some unlikely winners. Will it be normal service next month, or will the "Happy Slam" deviate from the script? Here are our projected Top 5 favorites in the men's tournament.
5. Carlos Alcaraz
Carlos Alcaraz is set to play the Australian Open for the first time in two years. He missed last year's edition due to an injury and eventually commenced his season on the South American clay in February.
Alcaraz has won a hard-court Slam at the US Open and, overall, has a formidable record on the surface. But after a particularly taxing offseason, it feels about right to have him down the pecking order in the list of favorites.
4. Daniil Medvedev
You can never go wrong with backing a two-time finalist of the Australian Open. Daniil Medvedev has played at least one Grand Slam final in four of the past five years.
In that span, he missed two majors completely out of his control (the pandemic in 2020 and the ban in 2022, both at Wimbledon). Medvedev has converted one of his four finals appearances into hardware, so he can not be counted out, especially if the draw opens up for him.
3. Alexander Zverev
Alexander Zverev was the biggest mover in the world's Top 10 last season. Having started 2023 outside the Top 20 spots and even losing his spot as Germany's No. 1 player mid-season, it looked like his career had stagnated.
But people forget that he was returning from a serious ankle injury he sustained just six months prior and was a solid pick to win a Grand Slam last year.
It didn't take him long before he rediscovered his mojo and returned to the winner's circle with titles in Hamburg and Chengdu and was a nominee for Comeback Player of the Year. He also scored four Top 10 wins in the second half of 2023.
2. Jannik Sinner
Jannik Sinner achieved the rare distinction of outdoing Novak Djokovic in two matches on the same day at the end of last season. His performances against the Serb aren't the only reasons he should be considered a contender in Grand Slams.
Sinner earned ELEVEN Top 10 wins last season, which is no mean feat, and he is on the trajectory that reflects his talent. Hard courts are his cup of tea, so watch out on this powerful 22-year-old who will wreak havoc in the Australian Open.
1. Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic is the oddsmaker's favorite to win the 2024 Australian Open, and he is the safest bet to reign supreme at the year's first Grand Slam. The Serbian is the king of Melbourne, winning the tournament a record ten times. Only one other man has won double-digit titles at a single major.
Since 2021, Djokovic has lost just three Grand Slam matches and simultaneously won seven of the most coveted titles in tennis. So, we're talking about an extraordinary athlete, and predictably, he'll be the man to beat Down Under.
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