Djokovic, Swiatek get No. 1 seedings ahead of Aus Open

Playing true to their rankings, Novak Djokovic and Iga Swiatek have been given the respective No. 1 seedings at the Australian Open in the first Grand Slam tournament of the year which begins Sunday at Melbourne Park.

Last year at the Australian Open: Sabalenka came back to beat Elena Rybakina 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 to earn her first Grand Slam trophy. Sabalenka had been 0-3 in major semifinals until that tournament and would go on to briefly reach No. 1 in the rankings later in the season.

Djokovic defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-3, 7-6 (4), 7-6 (5) to cap a successful, if tumultuous, return to Australia a year after being deported because he was not vaccinated against COVID-19 (he never did get the shots, but the country’s restrictions have been eased).

Among the challenges this time were a troublesome hamstring and off-court distractions involving Djokovic’s father.

It was Djokovic’s 10th Australian Open title and 22nd overall major title a total he has since raised to 24, the most by anyone in the sport’s Open era, which began in 1968.

The top of the rankings: Four-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek is No. 1 in the women’s rankings, with Sabalenka at No. 2, Rybakina at No. 3, Coco Gauff at No. 4, and Jessica Pegula at No. 5. Djokovic is No. 1 among the men, followed by two-time major champ Carlos Alcaraz at No. 2, Daniil Medvedev at No. 3, Jannik Sinner at No. 4, and Andrey Rublev at No. 5.

Naomi Osaka is back: Naomi Osaka, Angelique Kerber and Caroline Wozniacki all own Australian Open titles and all are making their returns to the tournament after taking time away from tennis to become mothers.

Rafael Nadal is absent: Rafael Nadal’s highly anticipated return to Grand Slam action was put on hold when he withdrew from the Australian Open because of a small muscle tear near the hip he hurt in Melbourne a year ago during a second-round loss. Nadal, who is 37, had surgery in June and last week played his first competitive matches in a year.He won two of his 22 major titles in Australia.

Key statistics: 1 Grand Slam titles for Gauff, the 19-year-old American who won the U.S. Open in September and now will enter a major tournament with a major trophy on her resume for the first time. 28 Djokovic’s winning streak at the Australian Open, the longest for a man in the Open era there.