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Melbourne: Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal are in the same half of a Grand Slam for the first time in seven years after the draw made on Friday for next week’s Australian Open in Melbourne.
Defending champion Novak Djokovic has world No. 4 Andy Murray in the top half of the men’s singles draw, while Nadal and Federer, second and third ranked, respectively, were placed for the bottom half.
It is the first time since the 2005 French Open that 16-time Grand Slam champion Federer and 10-time major winner Nadal have been pitted in the same half of a Grand Slam draw.
The draw means that if they progress, the quartet will meet in the last four with Djokovic and Murray on collision course and Federer and Nadal eyeing a semi-final clash.
Djokovic, who won three of the four Grand Slams and five Masters titles in a remarkable 2011, begins his Australian Open title defence against Italy’s Paolo Lorenzi.
In women’s singles, top seed Caroline Wozniacki will play 107th-ranked local Anastasia Rodionova in the first round.
Kim Clijsters will kick off her Australian Open title defence against a qualifier, while second seed Petra Kvitova will play 84th-ranked Russian Vera Dushevina.
Serena Williams, who has played only one injury-interrupted tournament in the lead-up following her US Open final appearance, faces a test against 44th-ranked Austrian Tamira Paszek.
World No. 4 Maria Sharapova, the 2008 champion, also faces a tricky first opponent in 67th-ranked Argentine Gisela Dulko.
US Open champion Sam Stosur, Australia’s top hope of a home Grand Slam winner, will play Romanian world No. 60 Sorana Cirstea.
“I didn’t play in any lead-up tournaments (to the Open) because I played a lot of matches in 2011 and I felt that I didn’t have to perform in the first week of the season,” Djokovic said at the draw.
“I feel comfortable with preparing for an extra week... I hope it works. I arrived last Wednesday, for the last five-six years I haven’t arrived in Melbourne this early so I think I have enough time to prepare for the conditions.”
Last year’s Australian Open final triumph over Murray was the first of seven straight tournament wins for Djokovic in a 41-match winning streak that was finally ended by Federer in the semi-finals of the French Open.
“I was playing the best tennis of my life, especially in the opening six months of last season and one of the strongest moments was in Australia last year,” Djokovic said.
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