Carlos Alcaraz, Daniil Medvedev will challenge Novak Djokovic for the Australian Open title - Purav Raja

He also spoke on India losing its only ATP tournament.

The Australian Open 2024, the first Grand Slam of the year, is around the corner and the excitement is palpable. This event is not only a prestigious one but also a crucial one for setting the tone for the rest of the year’s major tournaments. Therefore, every player aims to make the most of this opportunity by building on the early momentum at Melbourne Park.

The previous year was dominated by world no 1 Novak Djokovic, who won three Grand Slams and displayed his superb form throughout the year. The only blemish on his record was losing to Carlos Alcaraz in a five-set thriller at Wimbledon.

Hence, Djokovic is the clear favorite to win this year, but he will face some tough competition from his rivals, such as Daniil Medvedev, Jannik Sinner, Andrey Rublev, and others. Second seed Carlos Alcaraz will also be a strong contender, making the tournament a very open affair.

Ahead of the major tournament, Khel Now spoke to former Indian tennis player and doubles specialist Purav Raja, who shared his views on the upcoming tournament. Here are the excerpts:-

Who other than Novak Djokovic has a good shot of winning Australian Open 2024

It goes without saying that Novak Djokovic is the best bet to win the men’s singles tournament. However, who else has the next best chance? The tennis pundit quickly replied, “Alcaraz and Medvedev”. He added, “Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev are my top picks and they have earned it.”

Ankita Raina’s performance at the Australian Open qualifiers

Ankita Raina impressed everyone at the Australian Open qualifiers this year. She defeated Jessica Bouzas Maneiro of Spain in the first round of the qualifiers. However, she could not overcome Sara Bejlek, a much higher ranked player from Czech Republic, in the second round (6-1,7-5). This result dashed her hopes of playing in the main event of the tournament.

Purav Raja praised the Gujarat-born player for her performance. “I hope she gets to play in the Grand Slam (Australian Open) main draw. She has earned her spot there, just like Ramkumar Ramanathan, who is yet to feature in the singles main draw. She is in her prime (30 years old) and has to seize this opportunity, as we need a female representative in the Grand Slam singles. Especially after the brilliant career of Sania Mirza.”

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India losing its only ATP tournament this year

“Yeah, it’s sad I mean there’s grassroot level that’s coming through and I feel we need to invest in that a little more with the challengers and futures and create more new challengers in the process. As you can see there are no Indian singles players in the top 100 of the ATP and the organization only funds those players who make that cut so it becomes tough.”

“Just like that it becomes a little difficult for us (India) to hold a football world cup when the team doesn’t make it in the top 100. So, I think the right approach right now would be to build on the challengers and slowly work our way up to that level,” concluded the thoughtful Raja.

The extensive coverage of the first tennis Grand Slam of the year – Australian Open 2024 will be broadcast LIVE on Sony Sports Ten 5 SD & HD, Sony Sports Ten 2 SD & HD, Sony Sports Ten 3 SD & HD (Hindi) & Sony LIV from 14th January 2024

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