THE next in a line of WTA 500 events opening the year is the Grampians Trophy, yet another competition added to the womens’ tournament list purely for players forced into hard lockdown once landing in Australia. But while the tournament is new for 2021, the calibre of players certainly is not, with a number of familiar faces and high-calibre talent taking the court. Of the 28 competitors, initial confirmation was that 11 top 30 players will compete, headed up by Bianca Andreescu – who would return to the court with a protected ranking after well over a year away – and fellow top 20 players Belinda Bencic, Victoria Azarenka and Elena Rybakina. But a late withdrawal from Andreescu sees a last minute change to the draw, with Georgian alternate Oksana Kalashnikova brought into the lineup.

The lone Australian tournament without any homegrown talent – for obvious reasons, given very little were in hotel quarantine – will see a host of top notch players, with the United States boasting six competitors and ultimately leading the charge, with Jennifer Brady and Alison Riske amongst the top 10 ranked on the list, while Russia and Czech Republic will both field three players apiece in a stacked draw.

Joining the aforementioned players in the seeded positions are the likes of Maria Sakkari – who thanks to Andreescu’s withdrawal will now receive a first round bye as the fourth seed – Anett Kontaveit, and Angelique Kerber, with all three boasting plenty of winning experience and form on Australian soil, making for an intriguing field at Melbourne Park, especially given the lack of courttime for all participating athletes.

Adding to the stacked lineup are the likes of Yulia Putintseva and Ons Jabeur, who are more than capable of taking on the top echelon of talent and are both around the top 30 mark, while there is no shortage of quality in the mix either with a plethora of tournament winners taking the court. Youngster Leylah Fernandez will hope to follow in her compatriot Andreescu’s footsteps and push to elevate her game ahead of the Australian Open next week.

While all players will realistically be slightly off their game given the limited court time in recent months, plus the enforced hard lockdown when landing in Australia two weeks ago, expect the usual suspects to be right up there, while Azarenka had an excellent 2020, as did Rybakina. Whilst the likes of Kerber and Brady can sometimes be inconsistent, when they are on, they are on, making for interesting contests across the board.