In this Nov. 4, 2012, file photo, Serena Williams of the U.S. returns a serve from sister Venus during an exhibition tennis match at Ellis Park Indoor Arena in Johannesburg, South Africa. Williams has had surgery on her big toes and withdrew from an exhibition match against top-ranked Victoria Azarenka in Thailand in December. A medical certificate from Florida podiatrist Jeffrey Rockefeller says Williams “was treated for a chronic foot disorder which involved minor procedures on both of her great toes.” (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe, File)
MELBOURNE, Australia—Defending champion Victoria Azarenka and title favorite Serena Williams are in the same half of the draw at the Australian Open, meaning they could meet in the semi-finals.
Top-ranked Azarenka has lost 11 of her 12 matches against Williams, who increased her career haul to 15 Grand Slam titles last year by winning at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open.
No. 2-ranked Maria Sharapova, the French Open champion, is on the other half of the draw and could meet Venus Williams in the third round.
Novak Djokovic’s bid for a third consecutive Australia Open title got a boost when No. 2-ranked Roger Federer and U.S. Open champion Andy Murray both landed in the other half when the official draw was made Friday.
Top-ranked Djokovic will face Paul-Henri Mathieu in the first round and also has fifth-seeded Tomas Berdych in his quarter of the draw and fourth-seeded David Ferrer in his half. Ferrer is the highest-ranked Spaniard in the tournament in the absence of 11-time major winner Rafael Nadal, who hasn’t played on the tour since Wimbledon due to a left knee injury.
Federer will play Benoit Paire of France in the first round and has a potential third-round match against local hope Bernard Tomic. Federer, a four-time Australian Open winner, could face Murray in the semi-finals. Murray, who ended a 76-year drought for British men at Grand Slam events when he won the U.S. Open last year, has a potential quarterfinal against sixth-seeded Juan Martin Del Potro, the 2009 U.S. Open champion.
On the women’s side, Azarenka has a first-round match against Romania’s Monica Niculescu and is in the same quarter as former No. 1-ranked Caroline Wozniacki and seventh-seeded Sara Errani. Serena Williams will play Edina Gallovits-Hall of Romania in the first round and is in the same quarter as 2011 Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova and 19-year-old American Sloane Stephens, who is seeded 29th.