How to watch: The Tennis Channel, 7-9 p.m. Eastern; ESPN, 9 p.m.; streaming on ESPN+ and ESPN3, 9 p.m.
Tuesday’s schedule: Men | Women
Rafael Nadal vs. Dominic Thiem
Rafael Nadal, the world No. 1, won his first Grand Slam tournament at the French Open in 2005. Fifteen years later, he has continued to improve his game and learn. After a loss to Novak Djokovic in the ATP Cup this month, Nadal adjusted his game by playing more aggressively, using short, angled balls to pull his opponents into wider positions. On his way to the quarterfinals, he has dropped only one set. In his last two matches, he hit 35 more winners than unforced errors against Pablo Carreño Busta and 37 more against Nick Kyrgios.
His quarterfinal opponent, Dominic Thiem, is often compared to Nadal. Thiem, the fifth seed, is a clay-court specialist but lost to Nadal in the final of the French Open in 2018 and 2019. Thiem’s return of service, court movement and groundstrokes are all modeled on Nadal’s game, and in any other generation he would have been the most dominant player through the clay-court season. While some have described him as the heir to Nadal’s throne, it will be exceptionally difficult for him to overcome Nadal while he’s in scintillating form, especially on the slower hardcourts of Melbourne Park.
Simona Halep vs. Anett Kontaveit
Simona Halep, the fourth seed, has won two Grand Slam tournaments, at Roland Garros and Wimbledon, since her appearance in the Australian Open final in 2018. Halep may be the most consistent performer on tour, using her excellent return of serve and defensive shots to negate her opponents’ strengths. She glided through the field on her way to the quarterfinals without dropping a set. In her round of 16 match against Elise Mertens, the 16th seed, she won almost half of her returning points, forcing Mertens to play more aggressively, which led to 38 unforced errors. It’s a strategy that could work quite well against Halep’s quarterfinal opponent, Anett Kontaveit.
Kontaveit looked inconsistent in her first week in Melbourne. Although she steamrollered sixth-seeded Belinda Bencic in the third round in only 49 minutes, she has needed three sets to push past a pair of unseeded players. While her serve is usually her best weapon, she will be less likely to get free points off it against Halep, and will need to remain composed facing an opponent who knows how to make her hit an extra two or three balls to finish off what would otherwise be an easy point.
Stan Wawrinka vs. Alexander Zverev
Stan Wawrinka, the 15th seed, has reached his third Grand Slam quarterfinal since struggling with knee injuries in 2017 and 2018. A three-time Grand Slam tournament winner, he has shown glimmers of his former abilities, defeating Daniil Medvedev, the fourth seed, in the fourth round in a tough five-set match. Wawrinka used his most important weapon, his devastating one-handed backhand, as bludgeon and scalpel through the three-and-a-half-hour match.
Wawrinka has claimed that he expects there will be no new Grand Slam champions in 2020. If he wins on Monday night, he’ll be doing his part against a serious contender to prove himself wrong.
Alexander Zverev, the seventh seed, has often been heralded as a member of the “Next Generation” most likely to win a Grand Slam tournament and start winding down the era of the Big Three. At no point has that looked likelier than this week. He has not lost a set on his way to the quarterfinals. More impressively, he dispatched Andrey Rublev, the 17th seed who was on a 15-match winning streak and has won two ATP titles in 2020. Zverev didn’t lose a service game against Rublev, which will be difficult to replicate against the resurgent Wawrinka.
Garbiñe Muguruza vs. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
Although Garbiñe Muguruza is unseeded at this year’s Australian Open, it would be foolish to overlook her as a serious contender for the title. She won the French Open in 2016 and Wimbledon in 2017 but struggled in 2018 and 2019, dropping out of the top 10. After splitting with her coach, Sam Sumyk, at the end of last year and hiring Conchita Martinez, it seems that she may be back on her way to the top.
In her last two rounds she unseated Elina Svitolina and Kiki Bertens, the fifth and ninth seeds. Muguruza’s flattened groundstrokes allow her to dictate baseline points, even without going for outright winners. This consistent power makes it difficult for opponents to recover once they have been put on the back foot.
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, the 30th seed, recently hired Sumyk as her coach and is looking to break into the semifinals of a Grand Slam event for the first time. Her style is very similar to Muguruza’s, though her forehand groundstrokes tend to have a slight topspin to them. Pavlyuchenkova will be looking to come in to the net behind her forehand to cut off Muguruza’s flat shots, though it will be interesting if she instead tries to draw in Muguruza and keep her off rhythm.
Source: Tennis - nytimes.com
