The 2025 Australian Open is rapidly approaching, with the WTA and ATP stars now knowing their fates after the draw was confirmed.
All eyes will undoubtedly be on Aryna Sabalenka in the former, with the WTA number one the two-time Australian Open defending champion.
Sabalenka almost retired three years ago, but has pushed through her past struggles to become a dominant force in women’s tennis.
The Belarusian has three Grand Slam singles titles to her name, two of which have come in the past two Australian Opens.
She has also reached the last two US Opens, winning one and losing one, with Sabalenka a real force on hard courts.
Aryna Sabalenka’s potential route to the Australian Open final
And her potential route to yet another Grand Slam final has now emerged, with Sabalenka facing Sloane Stephens in round one.
A tie against Jessica Bouzas Maneiro could then arrive in round two in Melbourne, followed by one against Linda Noskova in round three.
READ MORE: The biggest threat to Aryna Sabalenka’s dominance at the Australian Open may not be Coco Gauff
The 26-year-old could then face very tricky reunions against Mirra Andreeva and Qinwen Zheng in round four and the quarter-final respectively.
Andreeva beat Sabalenka in the 2024 French Open quarter-final, while the Belarusian beat Zheng to win last year’s Australian Open final.
Unsurprisingly, two further tricky ties would likely arrive in the semi-final and final should Sabalenka make it that far, against Coco Gauff and Iga Swiatek respectively.
Coco Gauff and Iga Swiatek learn potential Australian Open final routes
Drawn in the same half as the defending champion, WTA number three Gauff certainly hasn’t had the ranking gods on her side.
The American faces compatriot Sofia Kenin in round one, with the latter having won the Australian Open in 2020.
Jodie Burrage and Leylah Fernandez could arrive in rounds two and three respectively, followed by Jelena Ostapenko in round four.
Gauff could then meet Jessica Pegula in the quarter-final before a repeat of her 2024 semi-final with Sabalenka, while Swiatek is her most likely final opponent.
The Pole meanwhile opens against Katerina Siniakova, before a round two meeting with either Katie Volynets or Rebecca Sramkova.
Her situation becomes significantly more tricky in round three, with Swiatek potentially taking on Ekaterina Alexandrova, Amanda Anisimova or Emma Raducanu.
Anna Kalinskaya or Victoria Azarenka could await in round four, with Emma Navarro or Daria Kasatkina potentially awaiting in the quarter-final.
Swiatek could then meet Elena Rybakina or Jasmine Paolini in the semi-final, or she could have a likely feisty reunion with Danielle Collins, with Sabalenka, Gauff and Zheng among her potential final opponents.
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