Australia Open to Commence without Federer, Barty, Raducanu, Others
By Ozumi Abdul
The first major sporting event of the year, the 2023 Australian Open is set to commence at the Melbourne Park on January 16.
The highly anticipated tournament will be the first Grand Slam to be held after the retirement of tennis great, Roger Federer, who won the trophy in 2004, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2017 and 2018.
The fiercest competition is in the women’s singles event with Polish tennis player and world no.1 Iga Świątek looking to win her first Australian Open title, having ended her run at the semi-finals in the 2022 edition.
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Seeded 1st in the draw for 2023, the three-time Grand Slam winner has some tough competition to face.
There are 11 other current or former Grand Slam champions participating at the tournament. These include Victoria Azarenka, Naomi Osaka and Sofia Kenin — all of whom have previously won the tournament.
Former finalists Petra Kvitová, Danielle Collins and Garbiñe Muguruza are also in the draw.
The most notable name missing will be 2022 champion Ashleigh Barty, who retired from the sport three months after winning the tournament.
British youngster, Emma Raducanu, will also miss out after suffering an ankle injury at the ABC Classic in Auckland.
