IN a comprehensive preview of the first Grand Slam of 2020, we take a look at 16 of the possible winners of this year’s Australian Open. We weigh up their Grand Slam form, recent form and past record and see who might come out on top at the end of the the two-week tournament.

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FAVOURITE:

Serena Williams (United States)
Rank: #9
Seed: #8

Heading into the 2020 Australian Open, it is no surprise to see who the favourite is – seven-time winner Serena Williams. To think that a 38-year-old that only 18 months back gave birth to her daughter is a Grand Slam favourite is remarkable. She comes into the Open off the back of consecutive Grand Slam finals, but as history would repeat itself, the Wimbledon and US Open finals both ended in heartbreak for one of the greatest players of all-time. She is just one Grand Slam title away from equalling Margaret Court as the leading player in history, and how it would be fitting to do so in Court’s home country at the event where there is a stadium named after her feats.

There is plenty of possibility that Williams could well do it. Last year she only reached a quarter final before bowing out to Karolina Pliskova, but her previous one was her last Grand Slam title – in 2017. That was the Grand Slam where afterwards it was discovered she was pregnant while playing, making the feat all the more amazing. With seven Australian Opens to her name, she would happily add an eighth, but only two have come since 2011. But her sheer determination and durability has been amazing because since her back-to-back titles in 2009 and 2010, two of the Grand Slam winners immediately after her have retired since, and she tacked on another couple for good measure. The only current Australian Open winners set to feature this year are Maria Sharapova (2008), Angelique Kerber (2016), Caroline Wozniacki (2018) and Naomi Osaka (2019).

Why she can win it?

– Greatest of the modern era and arguably greatest of all time
– Second year back at the title since giving birth and is as fit as ever
– Played a tournament in January prior to the Australian Open (ASB Classic)
– Finally won said tournament since giving birth
– It’s Serena Williams – she can do anything

The knocks?

– She is prone to having a shocker/down game when you least expect it
– Has lost her past four Grand Slam finals – pressure of equalling the record could be getting to her?
– Played in Auckland instead of Australia and did not play anyone inside the top 20

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CONTENDERS:

Karolina Pliskova (Czech Republic)
Rank: #2
Seed: #2

Much like Williams, Karolina Pliskova comes into the Australian Open off the back of a title-winning performance. Unlike Williams, Pliskova opted for the Premier competition in Brisbane, so she comes in off the back of playing three top 20 players, including third ranked and reigning title holder, Naomi Osaka – and had to do it tough. Winning against those players will do wonders for the confidence heading into the tournament and she knew that the one tournament would be enough for her prior to playing at Melbourne Park. She might not have a Grand Slam title to her name, but she has been consistent at the Australian Open over the past few years, making the final eight for the past three, including a semi-final appearance last year.

Why she can win it?

– The form at Brisbane is a good indicator, making a semi-final last year after winning Brisbane 12 months ago
– She has the mental edge over Serena Williams at Melbourne Park
– Cannot fault her 2020 preparation, seems primed to make the best run at winning her first Grand Slam

The knocks?

– Her form post-title at Zhengzhou was shaky at best – dropping matches to players ranked outside the top 20 and going out in the first and second rounds back-to-back, while only winning one full game at the WTA Finals
– Simona Halep was the only top 10 player she beat on hard court last year (Bianca Andreescu retired)

Naomi Osaka (Japan)
Rank: #3
Seed: #3

A two-time Grand Slam winner at 22-years-old, and back-to-back Grand Slams no less with the 2018 US Open and 2019 Australian Open. Reaching the number one spot in the rankings last year, Osaka became the first Japanese player to do so and got past the controversial US Open final to stamp her own authority with the win at Melbourne Park. As the reigning champion, Osaka deserves plaudits as a potential back-to-back winner. Still plenty of years left in her career, Osaka showed terrific form in the back-end of the year before having to withdraw from the WTA Finals due to injury. She had won back-to-back tournaments at that stage – in Japan and China – defeating world number one Ash Barty in the final at Beijing. She also just went down to Karolina Pliskova up in Brisbane, but the match would have been a great warm-up for the Australian Open. Despite her achievements, she is often forgotten about compared to some others, but she is here to stay and you cannot imagine her finishing her career with just two Grand Slam wins.

Why she can win it?

– Reigning champion, can get it done
– Has won two Grand Slams so not just a ‘good fortnight’
– Has the youthful excitement and damaging weapons to make it happen
– Her 2019 back-end form was sublime

The knocks?

– How impacted from the injury late in the year will she be at Melbourne Park? Seemed alright in Brisbane but it is a long tournament
– Still lacks experience and now she is the hunted at the Australian Open, so it will be interesting to see how she handles it

Petra Kvitova (Czech Republic)
Rank: #8
Seed: #7

It could be a good year for the Czech Republic and Petra Kvitova is as deserving as anyone to be considered a huge chance at the 2020 Australian Open. She has won two Grand Slam titles – both at Wimbledon – and made the 2019 Aus Open final before losing to Naomi Osaka. The question mark over Kvitova is her consistency. Since winning the 2014 Wimbledon, Kvitova only made two qualifying finals – both at the US Open – and the one finals appearance 12 months ago. Not only that, but she often gets bundled out early. In between her 2012 semi-finals appearance at Melbourne Park and her finals appearance in 2019, Kvitova played in five Aus Opens for two first round exits, two second round exits and a third round exit. Put simply, if she makes it past the third round, watch out. Being a left hander, she can tend to throw curve balls at the opposition and is the player most opponents do not want to face. At 29-years-old she is getting on to not have an Aus Open title, and her form at Brisbane was okay but not crash hot given she did not win a match against a top 20 player. On her form last year you would say she would not be a chance here, but she is the kind of player that just surprises you and stands up at times when you least expect.

Why she can win it?

– She can go deep in Grand Slams when she gets past the early challenges
– Her crafty left-handedness is always a diamond in the rough and troubled Australian opponents on hard court

The knocks?

– Her 2019 form post the Australian Open final was really questionable and she only won the won title
– Her past four matches against top 10 players have been losses

Ash Barty (Australia)
Rank: #1
Seed: #1

Most people would be scrolling down the preview to wonder why the world number one might be this far down in potential chances for the title. While Barty is the top player and a huge chance to win the Australian Open, you only have to look as far as history to realise how hard it is for an Australian to win on home soil. Evonne Goolagong Cawley was the last Australian to do it and that was in 1977 – her fourth straight title. There are plenty of reasons why Barty could lift the title. She won at Roland Garros last year which is even harder for an Australian to do, and has a “no-fear” approach when it comes to her tennis. Added to the fact that she is universally loved and she may well be the one person opponents would say “If I can’t win it then I’d love Ash to”. Her 2019 form was superb, taking out the WTA Finals series to secure the number one ranking, and beating her rivals, Petra Kvitova and Karolina Pliskova along the way. However despite her 2019 form, Barty has still only made the final eight twice – both in the first six months of the year last year with the Melbourne Park quarter finals appearance and the title at Roland Garros. Outside of that she has not made it past Round 4, however the improvement is clear because since the 2018 US Open – her first Round of 16 appearance – she has not dropped out of a Grand Slam prior to the fourth round. Her consistency of going deep is impressive over the past 18 months and expect her to be thereabouts again.

Why she can win it?

– She is the best player in the world at the moment
– She has shown a rate of improvement at Grand Slams
– Her 2019 was her best year yet and the win at WTA Finals was superb
– She will not be overawed by the home crowd pressure
– Won in Adelaide so coming in off the back of a title win

The knocks?

– An Australian winning at Melbourne Park is unbelievably rare
– Has just been escaping with some performances against much lower ranked opponents
– Not the most complete player just yet, but when she gets in the zone, she is hard to quell

Simona Halep (Romania)
Rank: #4
Seed: #4

The other major contender this year is the fourth ranked Romanian, Simona Halep. Already a Grand Slam winner like the others on this list, Halep knows what it takes to win on the biggest stage. The only issue with Halep is her form on hard court at Grand Slams. Her two worst performing Grand Slams are the Australian Open and US Open where she has just one finals appearance, one semi-finals and three quarter finals from 19 tournaments. Compare that to Roland Garros and Wimbledon and Halep has eight final-eight appearances from 17 tournaments. She only made the fourth round last year at Melbourne Park, but did win Wimbledon so showed she still has what it takes to make it through to the pointy end. Her 2019 back-end was disappointing, with Halep only winning one match against a top 30 player after her Wimbledon victory. She cannot be underestimated here, but there are as many question marks as there are green ticks.

Why she can win it?

– Two-time Grand Slam winner
– Always an underrated player who can beat anyone on her day
– Made an Australian Open final in 2018

The knocks?

– Her 2019 back-end was questionable
– Her 2020 form has not done wonders to eradicate those questions with a straight sets loss in the quarters at Adelaide.

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ROUGHIES:

Belinda Bencic (Switzerland)
Rank: #7
Seed: #6

Many people see this Swiss young gun as the next big thing and they could well be right. She is an impressive player who has ticked plenty of boxes over the past 12 months, but still needs to get it done in Grand Slams. The semi-final appearance at Flushing Meadows was her first in her history – after remarkably making a quarter final there as a 17-year-old and now she can enter a Grand Slam knowing she is capable of doing some damage. Unfortunately she has not done much damage at the Australian Open thus far, with only one Round 4 exit so the goal will be to get into the final eight and beyond.

Why she can win it?

– Exciting player ready to breakout at Grand Slams
– Broke even at the WTA Finals making the semi-finals before having to retire
– Beat the then-world number one and reigning title holder Naomi Osaka at the US Open in straight sets

The knocks?

– Still yet to impact whatsoever at Melbourne Park
– Only one Grand Slam exit past the fourth round since her debut five years ago

Elena Svitolina (Ukraine)
Rank: #5
Seed: #5

The fifth ranked Ukrainian almost made it back-to-back WTA Finals at Shenzhen last year, going down to Ash Barty in the final after coming from being eighth seed and topping her group. She had wins over Sofia Kenin, Simona Halep, Karolina Pliskova and Belinda Bencic which would give her great confidence heading into 2020. Excited to see what she could do at Brisbane, she was bundled out winning just two games against 27th ranked Danielle Collins which shocked everyone. Last year she reached her second consecutive quarter final at Melbourne Park, and then followed it up with semi-finals appearances at Wimbledon and the US Open which means three of her past four Grand Slams were final-eight finishes. At 25-years-old she is in the prime age to take the next step and win a Grand Slam, but her form has a massive question mark after that Brisbane loss.

Why she can win it?
– Stands up in huge games as shown at the WTA Finals Series run despite being the eighth seed
– Regularly making the last eight of Grand Slams in the past 12 months and having done it back-to-back at Melbourne Park

The knocks?
– Lost to Danielle Collins 6-1 6-1 at Brisbane which is hardly flattering
– No other form to read into since the WTA Finals so is largely an unknown prospect as to where she is at

Angelique Kerber (Germany)
Rank: #18
Seed: #17

Never discount a former Grand Slam winner, especially one who has won at three of the four slams. Angelique Kerber won at Melbourne Park back in 2016 and made a semi-final two years ago. Her 2016 and 2018 years were particularly fruitful with three titles, a finals appearance, a semi-final and a quarter final from eight tournaments. Last year she was solid at the Aus Open with a fourth round showing, but completely dropped off after that, losing in the first round at the French and US Opens, and second round at Wimbledon – as the reigning title holder. It caused her to drop down the rankings, but given her yo-yo years, she is due for a good one this year and despite being 31-years-old is every bit in the mix for the title.

Why she can win it?
– An Australian Open winner (and three-time Grand Slam winner)
– Is near-unstoppable when hitting form in Grand Slams
– Experienced and crafty with a consistent all-round game

The knocks?
– Last year she fell away in the major tournaments and many are seeing if she bounces back or if she is past that stage
– Only won two games against top 10 players last year
– Lost first round to Sam Stosur at the Brisbane International and losing to Stosur in Australia is – in fairness to Stosur – near impossible

Madison Keys (United States)
Rank: #11
Seed: #10

Madison Keys is approaching the prime of her career at 24-years-old and with a number of deep appearances in Grand Slams it is becoming a case of whether she will take the next step, or just be a continual competitor. She made a US Open final at 22-years old and since then, has reached two quarter finals and two semi-finals from eight appearances. Keys reached the Round of 16 here last year and has a semi-finals appearance from 2015. A promising teenager, she has made strides but now has to take the next step. In 2020 she has knocked off Sam Stosur (who defeated Angelique Kerber), Danielle Collins (who defeated Elina Svitolina) and Petra Kvitova at Brisbane, before narrowly going down to Karolina Pliskova in the final.

Why she can win it?
– She just seems ready to take the next step in terms of her career and where she is at
– Enters a Grand Slam seeded in the top 10 for the first time
– Her 2020 form already has been ultra-impressive

The knocks?
– Still yet to take that next step after being that tease for some time
– Confidence player who had some eye-opening wins, but some head-scratching losses last year

Aryna Sabalenka (Belarus)
Rank: #12
Seed: #11

The 2018 bolter who has only been on the pro circuit since 2016, the 21-year-old Belarusian has been ineffective at Grand Slams, but is working her way up through the other tournaments to be ranked 11th at years-end for two consecutive years. Her best achievement at a Grand Slam is one fourth round appearance, and her best one at Melbourne Park was third round after a first round exit on debut in 2018. Twelve months ago Sabalenka won at Shenzhen, and was the first of three titles for the year, and another finals appearance. Her Shenzhen performance this year was disappointing with a loss to 66th ranked Kristyna Pliskova, but made up for it at Adelaide with a quarter final smashing of second seeded Simona Halep.

Why she can win it?
– Young and fearless with a capability of winning against top players
– Driven and confident and piled on more titles last year at different points throughout the year
– Has that X-factor about her that could see her follow in the footsteps of two-time winner and countrywoman Victoria Azarenka

The knocks?
– Consistency still an issue from week to week
– Has not made an impact at Grand Slams

Elise Mertens (Belgium)
Rank: #17
Seed: #16

The 24-year-old Belgian is like a number of others on this list, coming into the prime of her career. To-date, she has not done a great deal at Grand Slams and in fact her debut Australian Open in 2018 was her best, with a semi-final appearance. She has just one other major accomplishment in Grand Slams with a quarter final appearance last year at the US Open with the hope she will carry that form into 2020 in the next Grand Slam she plays. She has some confidence question marks, looking almost unbeatable against lower ranked players, but twice in as many weeks has lost out to Kazakhstan’s Elena Rybakina who is four years her junior. Last year Mertens dominated at Doha, taking out the title with wins against top 10 players, Kiki Bertens, Angelique Kerber and Simona Halep on her way to the title. After that however, her form was patchy at best, losing to players ranked outside the top 100 at times.

Why she can win?
– Her best is good enough, just needs to put it all together
– In the prime of her career and is at a make-or-break stage over the next couple of years
– Has made a semi-final here before

The knocks?
– Outside of Doha is yet to cause too many headaches
– Inconsistency a concern

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DARK HORSES:

Caroline Wozniacki (Denmark)
Rank: #35
Seed: N/A

It was fair to say that the 2018 Australian Open winner’s 2019 did not go completely to plan, only making the third round in defending her Melbourne Park slam, as well as at Wimbledon and the US Open. She was a first round exit at Roland-Garros where she was a quarter finalists two years prior. Having made two US Open finals earlier in her career – as well as three semi-finals appearances at Flushing Meadows, Wozniacki can reach the pinnacle, she has just not done it consistently enough. Given her one Grand Slam success was only two years ago, you cannot discount the 29-year-old Dane who made a semi-final at Auckland last week, and had a good win over tough Julia Goerges. Not winning in a title in 2019, Wozniacki made the final at Charleston where she ultimately went down to Madison Keys, but only made it through to the third round at best in every tournament from then on.

Why she can win it?

– A proven winner here at Melbourne Park and only two years ago
– Still has the talent, but has to be at her best to do it

The knocks?

– Seems to be slipping behind many of the young up-and-comers on the tour
– Has only won the one Grand Slam and with the exception of defeating then world number one, Simona Halep in the final, did not not play a top 20 player in the run to the final.

Garbine Mugurusa (Spain)
Rank: #34
Seed: N/A

Like Wozniacki, Muguruza is a Grand Slam winner and former world number one which means you can never discount her from conversation. Having to withdraw from Hobart International this week would have sent a scare through the camp ahead of the Australian Open preparations, but it is hoped it might be precautionary with such a huge tournament coming up. Despite seemingly being around for some time – having made her Grand Slam debut at the US Open as a 19-year-old, the now 26-year old has a pretty good record when it comes to the four majors. Unfortunately for the Spaniard, it has predominantly being on her preferred surface of clay, where she won at Roland Garros and has made a semi-final and two quarter finals from seven appearances. She won at Wimbledon in 2017 after making a final two years prior, but since then has only reached the last eight once – a semi at the French Open. Her Round of 16 exit at the Australian Open last year was her equal second best result at Melbourne Park, but the worry is if she has what it takes to get to the pointy end.

Why she can win it?

– A two-time Grand Slam winner
– Former world number one with plenty of tricks
– Still theoretically in the prime of her career at 26-years-old
– Beat Serena Williams at Indian Wells last year as well as a number of other top 10 victories

The knocks?

– Only one final eight appearance at Melbourne Park in seven appearances is a worry
– Had a shocking second half of the year in 2019, bundled out in the first round at both Wimbledon and the US Open as part of four consecutive first round exits at tournaments

Kristina Mladenovic (France)
Rank: #39
Seed: N/A

The one player no-one would want to face just because of what she is capable of, and unfortunately for second ranked Karolina Pliskova, Kristina Mladenovic is exactly that at the Australian Open. Mladenovic toppled a red-hot Ash Barty in the Fed Cup final last year and then carried an out-of-sorts Caroline Garcia and her nation to victory in the tie. She has the potential to be a consistent top 10 player, but has only reached it once back in 2017. Her Grand Slam record is not something to gloat about with two quarter finals appearances across her 11 years dating back to her debut as a 15-year-old. She has been bundled out a massive 16 times in the first round of Grand Slams from 36 appearances, including the last three years – so playing the world number two is likely to make it four in a row. Still, her best is good enough, but now at 26-years-old, Mladenovic needs to start showing it on a grand scale and a massive scalp next week would give her a world of confidence.

Why she can win?
– Her best is as good as the best in the world as shown by her victory over Ash Barty in the Fed Cup
– A month after beating Barty she then beat Naomi Osaka in straight sets in Dubai
– Still in the prime of her career

The knocks?
– Her Grand Slam form is terrible and has had three consecutive first round exits at Melbourne Park
– Prone to losing to lowly ranked players hence consistency issues

Victoria Azarenka (Belarus)
Rank: #50
Seed: N/A

After an unbelievable two-year stint in 2012-13 where she won back-to-back Australian Opens and Qatar Opens, as well as WTA 1000 titles in Indian Wells, Beijing and Cincinnati, Azarenka has slowly slipped down the order. She won the three tournaments in 2016 which included the big ones in Indian Wells and Miami but has gone three years without success and just one final appearance at Monterrey last year in those three years. Her recent form at Grand Slams has been concerning – She missed two consecutive years and bowed out in the first round at both the Australian and US Open – and has had injury concerns as well as giving birth to her son Leo in December 2016. Prior to injury, Azarenka was a dominant player on hard court, winning the back to back titles, making three quarter finals and three fourth rounds in eight consecutive years from 2009-2016. She also made back-to-back finals in 2012-13 at the US Open and a couple of quarters before injury struck.

Why she can win?
– Her Australian Open form prior to her hiatus from the game was as good as anyone on tour
– She is the only Belarusian to win a Grand Slam title
– She is still only 30-years-old and could rekindle the form that made her a Grand Slam winner here

The knocks?
– Her form of late has been poor
– Has struggled to get back to her best since returning to the tour

Ekaterina Alexandrova (RUS)
Rank: #26
Seed: #25

The most in-form player heading into the Australian Open, Ekaterina Alexandrova is coming off back-to-back titles at Limoges and Shenzhen. The Limoges 125K event was her third triumph at the tournament, while Shenzhen was her first official title on the WTA Tour. She knocked off some pretty big names on the way to the Shenzhen title, barely breaking a sweat as she defeated former Grand Slam winner, Garbine Muguruza and up-and-coming Kazakhstan 20-year-old Elena Rybakina in the semi-final and final respectively. The question over Alexandrova is the fact that prior to Shenzhen, at 25 years of age, she had not won a title and with the exception of Roland-Garros last year, had not ventured past the second round in any Grand Slam since her debut in 2016. She was a latecomer to the professional tour, so could end up a late bloomer, but two first round exits and a second round exit at Melbourne Park does not spark joy. She is on a 10-game winning streak and showed she can compete with the best, smashing Simona Halep in Beijing last year 6-2 6-3 before being bundled out a match later by 45th ranked Daria Kasatkina in straight sets.

Why she can win it?
– Her form of late is sublime, winning 10 consecutive games either side of the New Year
– She is at a career high currently
– Showed her best is good enough by smashing Simona Halep in China last year

The knocks?
– Only the one WTA Tour title to her name so more uncertain quantity than most others
– Inconsistent at times losing to much lower ranked players
– Has struggled at Grand Slams thus far with a 7-13 record

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Prediction: [2] Karolina Pliskova (CZE) defeats [3] Naomi Osaka (JPN) in the Australian Open final