Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer are set to play their first matches at the 2020 Australian Open in Melbourne today, beginning yet another to see if they can add to their Grand Slam trophy tally.
Federer is the overall leader in Grand Slams (20), while Rafael Nadal (19) and Novak Djokovic (16) are not far behind.
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Federer vs. Johnson
The 38-year-old Federer only needs to win three more times at the first major of the season to attain 100 wins. He currently has a 97-14 record, and has won the Australian Open twice in the last three years. His first opponent is Steve Johnson, from the United States, who has lost both times against Federer in straight sets.
Johnson, formerly ranked 21st in the world has just won the ATP Challenger Tour in Bendigo. Federer stated that Johnson’s fresh win from that tournament could make him more ready for an intense match than he is, necessitating Federer to start strong early on to avoid being overwhelmed.
Last year, Federer was knocked out in the fourth round in an upset against Stefanos Tsitsipas. Since his first Australian Open title in 2004, Federer has reached at least the semi-finals every year since then, save for 2015 and 2019. Johnson is set to be Federer’s first match for the current season.
Djokovic vs. Struff
Djokovic is the only men’s player who has surpassed Federer’s Australian Open titles in the Open Era; he garnered his latest title last year with surprising ease against Nadal, winning in straight sets. Djokovic is facing Jan-Lennard Struff, from Germany; if he wins, he will become the sixth ever player to have 900 tour-level wins in the Open Era.
Djokovic has stated that his lead-in week to the tournament has been very heavy. This is because he had to focus on representing Serbia in the inaugural ATP Cup, where Djokovic played six singles matches to lead his team to victory. Due to the physical and emotional exertion of playing so many matches during the ATP Cup, Djokovic admitted that in the lead up to the Australian Open, he and his team focused as much on recuperation than on intense training.
He has a 2-0 record against the German winning in straight sets. However, this match is expected to be an exciting clash due to the aggressive nature of Struff’s play that unnerves many of his opponents; however, Djokovic’s mastery of the court may frustrate Struff, which some observers expect could lead to more aggression from the German, inviting unforced errors that the world no. 2 can ride to victory.
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