Australian Open draw: Jack Draper to play Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray faces Matteo Berrettini

Draper has climbed into the world's apical 40 aft being ranked extracurricular the apical 250 a twelvemonth ago

Rising British prima Jack Draper volition play apical effect Rafael Nadal successful the Australian Open archetypal circular with Andy Murray besides handed a hard draw.

Emma Raducanu, who has been struggling with an ankle injury, has been drawn against Germany's Tamara Korpatsch.

Raducanu, 20, could look seventh effect Coco Gauff successful the 2nd round.

The Australian Open, which is the archetypal Grand Slam tourney of the caller season, takes spot astatine Melbourne Park betwixt 16-29 January.

Tough draws await Draper and Murray

Draper, 21, emerged arsenic 1 of the rising stars connected the ATP Tour past twelvemonth and the left-hander has continued his accelerated advancement this play by reaching the Adelaide semi-finals.

But his debut successful the main gully astatine Melbourne Park could not person been overmuch tougher.

Nadal, 36, is the defending champion and, though helium has struggled with injuries and mislaid his 2 matches truthful acold this year, remains a daunting imaginable for astir opponents.

However, the 22-time large champion would besides astir apt not privation to commencement against a young endowment who possesses the powerfulness and assurance of 40th-ranked Draper.

Former satellite fig 1 Murray volition besides beryllium cursing his misfortune.

The 35-year-old Scot impressed earlier connected Thursday by beating Australian Alex de Minaur successful an accumulation lucifer astatine the Kooyang Classic, saying afterwards helium hoped for a benignant gully astatine Melbourne Park.

Instead helium was pitched against Italy's Berrettini, whose large serving troubles astir opponents and who reached the semi-finals past year.

What astir the different Brits?

Raducanu, who shocked the satellite by winning the 2021 US Open arsenic a teenage qualifier, suffered what she described arsenic much atrocious luck erstwhile she rolled an ankle successful Auckland past week.

It led to doubts implicit whether she would beryllium acceptable to play successful Melbourne, but she has been practising connected tribunal - albeit looking somewhat tentative astatine times - successful the past fewer days.

Raducanu is ranked 1 spot beneath Korspatch astatine 75th successful the world, but the 27-year-old German has ne'er won a main-draw lucifer astatine a major.

Cameron Norrie, Britain's highest ranked subordinate and the 11th seed, starts against French wildcard Luca van Assche, portion 25th effect Dan Evans faces Argentina's Facundo Bagnis.

Another hard gully for a British subordinate saw Kyle Edmund - a semi-finalist successful 2018 but connected the comeback way aft 3 genu surgeries - plays Italian 15th effect Jannik Sinner.

Harriet Dart, the lone different Briton successful the women's draw, starts against Swiss 32nd effect Jil Teichmann.

Djokovic learns his hostile connected return

Nine-time champion Djokovic missed past year's lawsuit aft being deported from Australia successful a enactment implicit his vaccination presumption and returns connected the backmost of winning the Adelaide rubric past week.

The 35-year-old Serb, who is besides bidding for a 22nd large rubric which would adjacent Nadal's men's record, has lone mislaid 1 of his past 25 matches.

Seeded fourth, Djokovic would not look Nadal until the last - but could look location favourite Nick Kyrgios successful the quarter-finals.

In the women's draw, satellite fig 1 Iga Swiatek, who reached the semi-finals past year, starts against Germany's caller Wimbledon quarter-finalist Jule Niemeier.

Another eye-catching gully sees Belarus's Victoria Azarenka and American Sofia Kenin - some erstwhile champions - conscionable successful the archetypal round.

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