Enqvist Sees Any One Of Top Three Favorites To Win Australian Open

Written by: Bob Larson Tennis on 14th December 2013

Enqvist Sees Any One Of Top Three Favorites To Win Australian Open

WIM18-20010704, LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM: Swedish player Thomas Enqvist plays a forehand during his quarter final match against Australian Patrick Rafter at the All England Tennis Championships in Wimbledon, Wednesday 04 July 2001. EPA PHOTO EPA/GERRY PENNY |

1999 Australian Open finalist Thomas Enqvist finds it hard to go beyond the top players when looking for a title favorite at next month’s Australian Open, The Swede who currently coaches his nation’s Davis Cup squad, told the BBC that the trophy short-list doesn’t extend much farther than Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and possibly Andy Murray.

“It’s even difficult to choose between those three,” said Enqvist, who lost his Melbourne title bid 15 years ago to Yevgeny Kafelnikov. “They are the true contenders for the title. I don’t see any new players who can challenge them. These three are on another planet and not many are able to beat them on current form.”

Enqvist could not help but hark back to his own experience in Melbourne, where he played the 1996 quarters before making his title bid three years later. “It was the surface most adopted to my game. Outdoors on cement was my preferred surface. I achieved my best results in Australia and the US.”

Enqvist puts little current stock in the “next generation” of tennis, even if Grigor Dimitrov and Jerzy Janowicz are considered the next big thing. “Dimitrov has a game to make some waves but I’m not so enthusiastic about his chances,. I’ve been watching Janowicz a bit more. He’s very interesting and did reach the Wimbledon semis-finals.”

The Swede also puts Murray in with a grand slam chance after winning Wimbledon last summer. “He could be the major unknown, he’s always played well in Australia. But when it’s hot and the ball is skidding, who can stop Nadal? But Djokovic will be an obstacle on that surface. It’s tough to make any kind of a title prediction. Djokovic (winner of his last 24 matches of 2013) knows well how to beat Nadal – he did it in Montreal and at the World Tour Finals.”

Topics: 10sballs, Andy Murray, ATP World Tour Finals, Australian, GRIGOR DIMITROV, Jerzy Janowicz, Novak Djokovic, Open, Rafael Nadal, Sports, Tennis, Tennis News