First round
Nadal over Dellien in 3, Sousa over Delbonis in 5
Eubanks over Gojowyczk in 4, Carreno Busta over Kovalik in 3
Kyrgios over Sonego in 4, Simon over Cuevas in 3
Ymer over Uchiyama in 4, Khachanov over Viella Martinez in 3
Monfils over Lu in 3, Pospisil over Karlovic in 3
Bedene over Duckworth in 5, Auger-Aliassime over Gulbis in 4
Fritz over Griekspoor in 4, Anderson over Ivashka in 3
Ramos-Vinolas over Bolt in 5, Thiem over Mannarino in 3
Medvedev over Tiafoe in 3, Koepfer over Martinez in 4
Munar over Gaston in 4, Popyrin over Tsonga in 5
Isner over Monteiro in 4, Galan over Tabilo in 4
Kecmanovic over Seppi in 4, Wawrinka over Dzumhur in 3
Goffin over Chardy in 4, Herbert over Norrie in 4
Benchetrit over Sugita in 5, Rublev over O’Connell in 3
Basilashvili over Kwon in 4, Verdasco over Donskoy in 3
Ruud over Gerasimov in 4, Zverev over Cecchinato in 3
Berrettini over Harris in 3, Sandgren over Trungelliti in 4
Berankis over Carballes Baena in 5, Coric over Querrey in 3
Pella over Smith in 3, Barrere over Safwat in 5
Bublik over Thompson in 5, Fognini over Opelka in 5
Shapovalov over Fucsovics in 3, Sinner over Purcell in 3
Paul over Mayer in 5, Dimitrov over Londero in 3
Hurkacz over Novak in 3, Millman over Humbert in 5
Krajinovic over Halys in 4, Federer over Johnson in 3
Tsitsipas over Caruso in 3, Kohlschreiber over Giron in 4
Garin over Travaglia in 3, Raonic over Albot in 3
Paire over Stebe in 3, Moutet over Cilic in 5
Andujar over Mmoh in 4, Bautista Agut over Lopez in 5
Schwartzman over Harris in 3, Davidovich Fokina over Gombos in 5
Kukushkin over Polmans in 3, Edmund over Lajovic in 4
Evans over McDonald in 3, Djere over Nishioka in 5
Gunneswaran over Ito in 5, Djokovic over Struff in 3
Second round
Nadal over Sousa in 3
Carreno Busta over Eubanks in 4
Simon over Kyrgios in 5
Khachanov over Ymer in 4
Pospisil over Monfils in 4
Auger-Aliassime over Bedene in 4
Anderson over Fritz in 4
Thiem over Ramos-Vinolas in 3
Medvedev over Koepfer in 3
Popyrin over Munar in 3
Isner over Galan in 3
Wawrinka over Kecmanovic in 4
Goffin over Herbert
Rublev over Benchetrit in 3
Verdasco over Basilashvili in 4
Zverev over Ruud in 4
Berrettini over Sandrgen in 4
Coric over Berankis in 4
Pella over Barrere in 3
Bublik over Fognini in 4
Shapovalov over Sinner in 5
Dimitrov over Paul in 3
Hurkacz over Millman in 5
Federer over Krajinovic in 3
Tsitsipas over Kohlschreiber in 3
Raonic over Garin in 3
Paire over Moutet in 5
Bautista Agut over Andujar in 3
Schwartzman over Davidovich Fokina in 3
Kukushkin over Edmund in 5
Evans over Djere in 3
Djokovic over Gunneswaran in 3
Third round
Nadal over Carreno Busta in 3
Khachanov over Simon in 5
Pospisil over Auger-Aliassime in 4
Thiem over Anderson in 4
Medvedev over Popyrin in 3
Wawrinka over Isner in 4
Rublev over Goffin in 3
Verdasco over Zverev in 4
Berrettini over Coric in 4
Pella over Bublik in 5
Shapovalov over Dimitrov in 4
Federer over Hurkacz in 3
Tsitsipas over Raonic in 4
Bautista Agut over Paire in 3
Schwartzman over Kukushkin in 4
Djokovic over Evans in 4
Fourth round
Nadal over Khachanov in 3
Thiem over Pospisil in 5
Wawrinka over Medvedev in 5
Rublev over Verdasco in 3
Pella over Berrettini in 5
Shapovalov over Federer in 5
Bautista Agut over Tsitsipas in 4
Djokovic over Schwartzman in 4
Quarterfinals
Nadal over Thiem in 4
Rublev over Wawrinka in 5
Shapovalov over Pella in 3
Bautista Agut over Djokovic in 5
Semifinals
Nadal over Rublev in 3
Shapovalov over Bautista Agut in 4
Final
Nadal over Shapovalov in 4
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WHO YA GOT?
Totally disagree.. Final Medvedev-Djokovic, Djokovic wins in 4 sets!! Fed will not reach qf, I agree, but RBA can t win over Djoko. Medvedev will easily win over Wawrinka.
Where’s Fed’s quarter?
A lot of faith in Matteo making a few rounds. I hv him as an early casualty.
Hoping for a Daniil win please
High marks for creativity, Ricky!
I could see it happening…with the usual caveat – if Rafa is healthy.
is he ever healthy? dull never loses when healthy.
Shapovalov in final ????????
Even Homer Simpson would know better than that….
Try again , please….what about Karlovic in final ?
Good God Ricky have you been drinking!?😁
RBA over Nole?! Can’t remember you coming up with such controversial picks before! I find it really difficult to see a Rafa Shaps final…
Apologies in advance for the drinking quip…just vaguely gobsmacked! Will be delighted if your predictions are right..
I like the confidence you show in Rublev and Shapo, but not so sure about RBA pick, not Kyrios early exit prediction….and Fed WILL make it to Semis🦘🎾🦘
Rublev will be gassed winning Doha and Adelaide
But seriously shapo in final ? N shapo beating fed n agut beating Novak ? Can’t see both happening
Whoa, Ricky picking Shapo to reach the final? And Rublev to the SF? Seriously?
Shapo to beat Fed in five? Shapo would freeze seeing Fed across the net, chances are Fed would beat him handily in three sets!
The prediction of Agut beating Djoko in five sets is interesting, and Agut has to beat Tsitsipas first, can he? (He lost to Tsitsipas last year in the QF).
So Ricky predicting only one of big three to survive till the end, and that person isn’t Djoko! Interesting.
I can’t predict anything, for I’ve no idea how the non big three or non top ten players are playing and upsets always happen.
😳😳 i will eat my shoe if the final comes to pass
👞👞👞👟👟👟🍴🍴🍴
Please let Ricky ‘s pick be right so vmk has to make good on this unwise promise!😀
I want a video of that!!!
Agreed. If Ricky is right vmk should send the video for us to watch…!
🍴🍴
Interesting picks, Shapo has been playing high level tennis so wouldn’t be totally out of left field to see him do some serious damage. Not sure I agree about NK bombing out second round.
RBA upsetting djokovic would be a great match, although RBA has a tough draw until then imo.
I’ve got NK vs. Medvedev and Fed vs. Tsitsi in my semifinals
with NK upsetting Rafa, Tsitsipas taking out djokovic, Federer-shapo should be epic, may as well be a toss-up.
Excited for the next two weeks!!
NK vs Medvedev? NK won’t go far imo, he’ll normally bomb out early, maybe this time R4 vs Rafa? Medvedev may or may not go far as he has a tough draw, if he reaches the SF then he’ll be hard to beat even for Rafa.
Maybe we’ll have Dimi taking out Fed again, aka USO2019; but Dimi may have to get rid of Shapo first. If Dimi is playing well, like at AO2017, he can take out Shapo.
I think Schwartzman may soften Djoko a bit in R4 and so Tsitsipas or Agut, if they play well, either of them may have a chance against Djoko.
Shapo is in a great form, but final is too much for him. Even though I am a Rafa fan,at Melbourne, Nole Djokovic is the best.
Ricky, I recall reading you choosing Rafa vs. Zverev in a separate post if they were on opposite sides of the draw. Why’d you change your mind on Zverev?
Does anyone know how the courts are playing at AO this year? I know that in recent years, AO has been on the quicker side, while USO has played slower. But it can fluctuate from year to year. If the court plays on the quicker side, it doesn’t matter to me how good of form Shapo is in. I just think his game is too one-dimensional, and over best-of-five his huge, winding-up cuts at the ball can be exploited on a quicker/lower-bouncing court. Shapo is not like Rafa, where Rafa has so much more variety in his game to be effective on a quicker surface. I know that Fed has to start really falling off eventually at his age, but it’s hard for me to see it happen at AO against a player like Shapo. Perhaps if Fed was facing Shapo in the 1st or maybe 2nd round, then I might be more confident in Shapo being too match-ready for Fed. But by the 4th round, assuming Fed is still in, he should have enough match play under his belt to be ready to compete hard. If this were a Masters tournament, Shapo getting the upset would seem much more likely. But at a best-of-5 Major? Specifically the one that Fed won only 2 years ago? I just have trouble seeing it happen.
And as for RBA beating a prime Djokovic at the Australian Open?? C’mon Ricky. Sure, RBA has definitely given Djoko trouble in smaller tournaments in recent years. But we’re talking a guy who has never done anything big at the majors beating the defending and 7-time AO champ, who is in good form, at the AO. What is the reasoning for picking this upset? I just don’t see what would make someone choose this upset except just having a hunch, or making a wild guess. Did Djoko show some serious vulnerability in the last month that I didn’t catch? I just don’t get it.
Kevin, I just read Brad G’s twitter with his saying that centre court is playing fast when players are practising.
I am with you. I don’t see Shaps beating Fed unless Fed plays terrible and for me Nole is the fave to win. I don’t see RBA beating him.
The court playing fast isn’t so great for Nole but he is still the player to beat.
I believe the company who produces the court has changed, so there is the possibility they’ll play a little different this year. That said, Tennis Australia say they are aiming for the same kind of surface as in recent times.
I don’t think anyone really knows, but I’m assuming that this stage it will be pretty much the same.
Hi Kevin – Nice to see you dropping by for the AO. 🙂
I caught a discussion on the Tennis Channel today. AO has switched to a Spanish company (if they mentioned the name I did not catch it). This is the company that makes the courts for London WTF, Paris Bercy, and the Davis Cup last year in Madrid. (All places where Rafa played very well last year when healthy). The AO folks have said that the aim is to make the court as much like the previous years as possible.
Shapo might not even play (air quality)
It’s a bit of a mystery what condition Fed will show up for the AO, so I *could* see him getting knocked out by an underdog (although his draw is not too bad).
Still, it’s hard to see Shapovalov making it all the way to the final. The guy just gives away too many unforced errors. His consistency is not quite right, hence he couldn’t beat De Minaur at the ATP cup.
RBA likes playing Djokovic, and this surface should give him the best chance. I think there is more chance of RBA beating Djokovic than Shapo making the final. However, RBA has to do it over five sets here, which is another matter. Plus he’s got to get past Tsitsipas, which is possible since Tsitsipas seems a little out of form, although he may be able to raise his level from the ATP cup.
RBA could beat Tsitsi but that’s about it. Ill also be surprised if Shapo goes further than beating Dimitrov if they meet. For all the reasons given above .
I think RBA has a chance to beat Novak if they meet…it’s not totally impossible imo…but..a bit tough in a best of 5…
Bout Shapo…in 1 of my Bracket,i took him out by Marton Fuchsovics in 1st rd…hehe…hey!..an upset is possible!…sometimes Marton can be a dangerous opponent in early rounds…
Yes possible, but a long road to beat both in-form Tsitsi and Nole over five sets.
Shapo said he mightn’t play if the air quality is bad
Congrats MA! One of your brackets is lookin’ good. Shapo went down in 4.
Hehehe….Thanks Ramara!😄👍😚
But…i guess it’s a good luck as well!
I would not be surprised to see Bautista Agut beating Djokovic, Fed losing to anyone that has a good day and the same goes for Nadal.
I guess that makes it more exciting knowing that anything can happen on any day in this year’s Australian Open.
big 3 pick: Nole
‘underdog’ pick: Tsitsipas
How about a Meddy vs Tsitsi final? Who would win?
Poor Australia. Makes me sick thinking about all of the homes lost, lives and habitat destroyed. Horrible sad backdrop for this AO. Can hardly focus on tennis. But I did fill out both brackets: WTA and ATP.
After mulling it over, Ricky’s picks are cool and would make a sad AO feel brighter.
The winners will have healthy lungs and strength. Rafa sounds right for it.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/jan/17/choking-point-how-australias-bushfires-have-left-its-citizens-struggling-for-air
Same applies to picks on the WTA side. Wta picking is way more sketchy. Mira Andi won both WTA brackets last week 😀 I’d copy her picks!
Ricky throwing a lifeline to dull lovers.
Can we have Cheryl Murray’s predictions please? Both, roof open / closed. Thanks.
Great pick for the finals!