In my years of watching tennis, I came to realize that there is no reliable indicator or predictor of how someone will perform at a major. One thing is certain though, everyone hopes to put their best foot forward, hoping that they are peaking at just the right time to claim a major title.

The draws will forever seem rigged to me because Rafael Nadal whether ranked number one or number two never seems lucky enough to catch a break early; and once again Venus and Serena Williams are in the same quarter of the draw.

I guess Nadal and his team can take some comfort that he does not have Roger Federer, Fabio Fognini, Denis Shapovalov or Stefanos Tsitsipas in his half of the draw and these players could potentially be eliminated from the draw before Nadal would have to face them. However, his quarter is still not easy as the likes of Nick Kyrgios, Karen Khachanov, Daniil Medvedev, and Dominic Thiem can pose a significant threat.

Who Can Dethrone Djokovic?

Of course, all eyes will be on Novak Djokovic as no doubt the odds probably put him as the favorite to defend his title and why not. Djokovic continues to find ways to elevate his game when it comes to the majors, his biggest threat is probably injury or environmentally related. As with any major there will always be a few breakout performances, who will it be this year? Will it be Mikael Ymer, Jannik Sinner or Tommy Paul?

At the end of the day everyone must play one match at a time and the individual across the net. It does take a toll if your quarter is loaded with players that can tax you, but unfortunately that is the luck of the draw.

The number one ranked player, Ashleigh Barty, is coming off winning the title in Adelaide; did she expend too much energy so close to the start of the Open? Her first-round opponent, Lesia Tsurenko, if she brings her best game, can test her, but perhaps not.

Eighth seeded, Serena Williams, will face numerous obstacles in her quest for number twenty-four; and her first obstacles will be first round nerves and a potentially tricky teenager, Anastasia Potapova.

The second seed, Karolina Pliskova will be tested immediately as she will meet the thirty-ninth ranked player, Kristina Mladenovic in the first round.

Is Osaka Ready To Defend Her Title?

Third seed and defending champion, Naomi Osaka, will face off against Marie Bouzkova. Fourth seed, Simona Halep, will have a tough opponent in American Jennifer Brady. Brady pushed Halep to three tough sets in their only previous meeting last year.

Who will be the breakout female player this year? Many eyes will be on Coco Gauff, but there are many other contenders.

Play starts tomorrow in the USA, enjoy the matches and expect some brilliant tennis.

SOURCE OF IMAGES: serveandrally originals