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Rod Laver Arena will play host to five massive matches today.
Three will feature Top 3 seeds in their first action of the tournament. No. 1 Rafael Nadal, No. 2 Vera Zvonareva and No. 3 Kim Clijsters all take the court at various intervals for Day Two of the Australian Open.
The other two matches allow the locals to cheer on their pride and joy. WTA fifth seed Samantha Stosur, who takes on America's Lauren Davis, and former world No. 1 Lleyton Hewitt, who draws a devil of a first-round opponent in Argentina's David Nalbandian.
Throughout each and every day of the tournament, we'll be providing you several "matches to watch": interesting combinations we feel should be both entertaining to the eye and impactful to the way the rest of the tournament will fall.
Without further adieu, here are Tuesday's top 12 matches (six each on both sides of the bracket). Note that because of the time difference between the continental US and Australia, most matches will be taking place late the night before the scheduled date.
ATP
David Nalbandian (27) vs. Lleyton Hewitt: Up six spots to No. 21 this week in the polls after reaching the finals at Auckland, this is Nalbandian's best shot to crack the Top 20 since he fell out late in 2009. He's squared off with Hewitt five times, but only once since 2005. Hewitt, down to 54th in the world, will have the sellout crowd firmly on his side.
Despite turning 30 next month, when you play in front of the home fans, there's always the thought that you've got one last burst left. For Hewitt, who hasn't won more than one title in a year since 2004, and who last won a major in 2002, this is that time.
Andy Murray (5) vs. Karol Beck: After dumping his coach last summer, stodgy Andy Murray turned into quasi-cool Andy Murray, finishing the year with a big win over Roger Federer at Shanghai and reaching the finals of the Barclays, pushing Rafael Nadal to the wire. There's no reason he can't make a push to the semifinals, needing to beat Robin Soderling in the quarterfinals. Beck, ranked 101st, is older, shorter and a lot less experienced than the Scot.
Phillipp Petzschner vs. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (13): Muhammad Ali's clone finally returns to the court, but is he healthy? Inquiring minds want to know and the answer seems uncertain. Tsonga reached the Doha semifinals but was manhandled there by Federer. This is the site of his 2008 coming out party, but Petzschner is no slouch in the first round. The 26-year-old German is ranked 67th in the world.
John Isner (20) vs. Florent Serra: Yes, he's still the guy who won the crazy long match, but Isner aspires to be so much more than a tall body, a big serve and "70-68". He can start proving it here by beating Serra for the second time.
Ernests Gulbis (24) vs. Benjamin Becker: It's the curious case of Ernests Gulbis, who seemed on the fast track to the Top 10 by the end of 2008, then nosedived to 90th in 2009 only to finish last season back in the Top 25. If he can stay focused, the 22-year-old Latvian can compete with anyone. If he can't, a seasoned pro like Becker can mop the floor with him and start his own run.
WTA
Dinara Safina vs. Kim Clijsters (3): It's a rare sight for two former No. 1s to be squaring off in the first round, but such is the case for current superstar Clijsters and the up-and-down Safina. With Wozniacki and Zvonareva struggling to start the year, this is Clijsters' chance to take back that top spot in the rankings, not to mention winning her first major outside the US Open. What Safina will bring to the table is anyone's guess at this point. She's just 2-7 all-time against Clijsters, but one of those came in 2009.
Jelena Jankovic (7) vs. Alla Kudryavtseva: The number next to Jankovic's name just keeps growing larger and larger, and no one has an answer why. She's fallen five spots since Wimbledon last year, and started this season with a first-round defeat. She made the third round here a year ago, and if she doesn't start finding her strokes, the wheels are going to come off the ranking in a hurry.
Kudryavtseva, ranked 66th, has no spectacular assets to her game that would worry a Top 10 player on a normal basis, but Jankovic has struggled immensely against players of this caliber over the past six months.
Coco Vandeweghe vs. Alize Cornet: The fiery American teenager with the great bloodlines (dad Kiki was an NBA star in the 80s) returns to action after failing to qualify at both Brisbane and Sydney. The tournament's promoters are hoping she catches fire like she did last year in San Diego and Tokyo (both quarterfinal appearances), but she really needs to find some consistency instead of the up-and-down spikes. Ranked 83rd, Cornet turns 21 on Saturday and is trying to recapture the magic of 2008, when she finished the season ranked 16th. She reached the fourth round here two years ago.
Kimiko Date-Krumm vs. Agnieszka Radwanska (12): Some reward for Radwanska's 12th seed spot, a first-round date with Ms. Date-Krumm, elder stateswoman on the tour. When Radwanska was born in 1989, Date-Krumm was already on tour.
Klara Zakopalova vs. Melanie Oudin: The star of the US Open two years ago needs to get her game going again, falling from 49th at the end of 2009 to 65th at the end of 2010. Ironically, these two just played two weeks ago in the first round at Hobart, with Zakopalova taking a 6-3, 7-6(3) decision.
Samantha Stosur (5) vs. Lauren Davis: This seems like Stosur's big chance to break out and take her first major, the ranking won't climb much higher without one. Winning on the home turf can be rife with pressure, but the Brisbane native has typically handled it well, although she is seeking her first quarterfinal trip. The match can be one of two things for 443rd-ranked Davis, a learning experience or the greatest upset in Slam history.
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