Novak Djokovic (SRB) [1] v David Goffin (BEL)
Ivan Dodig (CRO) v Guido Pella (ARG)
Alex Kuznetsov (USA) [WC] v Lucas Pouille (FRA) [WC]
Grigor Dimitrov (BUL) [26] v Alejandro Falla (COL)

Alexandr Dolgopolov (UKR) [22] v Dmitry Tursunov (RUS)
Bernard Tomic (AUS) v Victor Hanescu (ROU)
Simone Bolelli (ITA) v Yen-Hsun Lu (TPE)
Philipp Kohlschreiber (GER) [16] v Qualifier

Tommy Haas (GER) [12] v Guillaume Rufin (FRA)
Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (ESP) v Qualifier
Andrey Kuznetsov (RUS) v Ryan Harrison (USA)
John Isner (USA) [19] v Carlos Berlocq (ARG)

Mikhail Youzhny (RUS) [29] v Pablo Andujar (ESP)
Federico Delbonis (ARG) v Qualifier
Fernando Verdasco (ESP) v Marc Gicquel (FRA) [WC]
Janko Tipsarevic (SRB) [8] v Nicolas Mahut (FRA) [WC]

The top seed will advance here, but it won't be easy if the other players in this quarter deliver on their talent.

:: ::

Rafael Nadal (ESP) [3] v Daniel Brands (GER)
Martin Klizan (SVK) v Michael Russell (USA)
Lukas Rosol (CZE) v Qualifier
Fabio Fognini (ITA) [27] v Qualifier

Benoit Paire (FRA) [24] v Marcos Baghdatis (CYP)
Lukasz Kubot (POL) v Qualifier
Grega Zemlja (SLO) v Santiago Giraldo (COL)
Kei Nishikori (JPN) [13] Jesse Levine (CAN)

Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI) [9] vThiemo De Bakker (NED)
Horacio Zeballos (ARG) v Qualifier
Kenny De Schepper (FRA) v Robin Haase (NED)
Jerzy Janowicz (POL) [21] v Albert Ramos (ESP)

Florian Mayer (GER) [28] v Denis Istomin (UZB)
Florent Serra [WC] (FRA) v Nikolay Davydenko (RUS)
Qualifier v Qualifier
Richard Gasquet (FRA) [7] v Sergiy Stakhovsky (UKR)

Rafa takes this without a whole lot of drama.

:: :: :: ::

Tomas Berdych (CZE) [5] v Gael Monfils (FRA) [WC]
Ernests Gulbis (LAT) v Rogerio Dutra Silva (BRA)
Igor Sijsling (NED) v Jurgen Melzer (AUT)
Tommy Robredo (ESP) [32] v Jurgen Zopp (EST)

Andreas Seppi (ITA) [20] v Leonardo Mayer (ARG)
Blaz Kavcic (SLO) v Qualifier
Martin Alund (ARG) v Edouard Roger-Vasselin (FRA)
Nicolas Almagro (ESP) [11] v Qualifier

Milos Raonic (CAN) [14] v Xavier Malisse (BEL)
Michael Llodra (FRA) v Qualifier
Evgeny Donskoy (RUS) v Qualifier
Kevin Anderson (RSA) [23] v Qualifier

Marcel Granollers (ESP) [31] v Feliciano Lopez (ESP)
Joao Sousa (POR) v Go Soeda (JPN)
Albert Montanes (ESP) v Qualifier
David Ferrer (ESP) [4] v Marinko Matosevic (AUS)

Berdych vs. Ferrer in the quarterfinal.

:: ::

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA) [6] v Aljaz Bedene (SLO)
Jarkko Nieminen (FIN) v Paul-Henri Mathieu (FRA)
Roberto Bautista Agut (ESP) v Gilles Muller (LUX)
Jeremy Chardy (FRA) [25] v Benjamin Becker (GER)

Juan Monaco (ARG) [17] v Daniel Gimeno-Traver (ESP)
Viktor Troicki (SRB) v James Blake (USA)
Radek Stepanek (CZE) v Nick Kyrgios (AUS) [WC]
Marin Cilic (CRO) [10] v Philipp Petzschner (GER)

Gilles Simon (FRA) [15] v Lleyton Hewitt (AUS)
Adrian Mannarino (FRA) [WC] v Pablo Cuevas (URU)
Jan Hajek (CZE) v Qualifier
Sam Querrey (USA) [18] v Lukas Lacko (SVK)

Julien Benneteau (FRA) [30] v Ricardas Berankis (LTU)
Tobias Kamke (GER) v Paolo Lorenzi (ITA)
Qualifier v Qualifier
Roger Federer (SUI) [2] v Qualifier

The more things change, the more they remain the same. This sets up a repeat of the Rome final with the same lopsided result.

Serena Williams [1] v Anna Tatishvili
Caroline Garcia [WC] v Qualifier
Monica Niculescu v Johanna Larsson
Sorana Cirstea [26] v Kiki Bertens

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova [19] v Andrea Hlavackova
Petra Cetkovska v Olga Puchkova
Qualifier v Qualifier
Roberta Vinci [15] v Stephane Foretz Gacon [WC]

Caroline Wozniacki [10] v Laura Robson
Bojana Jovanovski v Qualifier
Pauline Parmentier v Magdalena Rybarikova
Ekaterina Makarova [22] v Svetlana Kuznetsova

Varvara Lepchenko [29] v Mirjana Lucic-Baroni
Romina Oprandi v Elina Svitolina
Jana Cepelova v Christina Mchale
Angelique Kerber [8] v Mona Barthel


A tricky quarter for the top seed. We'll have to see if she's been able to mentally recover from last year's first-round exit in Paris, the first time in her entire career to ever lose her first match at a major.

:: ::

Agnieszka Radwanska [4] v Shahar Peer
Mallory Burdette v Donna Vekic
Mandy Minella v Qualifier
Venus Williams [30] v Urszula Radwanska

Julia Goerges [24] v Qualifier
Virginie Razzano [WC] v Claire Feuerstein [WC]
Chanelle Scheepers v Mathilde Johansson
Ana Ivanovic [14] v Petra Martic

Nadia Petrova [11] v Monica Puig
Madison Keys v Misaki Doi
Irena Pavlovic [WC] v Shelby Rogers
Carla Suarez Navarro [20] v Simona Halep

Sabine Lisicki [32] v Sofia Arvidsson
Maria-Teresa Torro-Flor v Qualifier
Ayumi Morita v Yulia Putintseva
Sara Errani [5] v Arantxa Rus


I'm unaware of the form of most of the seeded players in this quarter.  

:: :: :: ::

Na Li [6] v Anabel Medina Garrigues
Bethanie Mattek-Sands v Lourdes Dominguez Lino
Tatjana Maria Qualifier
Yaroslava Shvedova [27] v Coco Vandeweghe

Klara Zakopalova [23] v Kaia Kanepi
Stefanie Voegele v Heather Watson
Lucie Hradecka v Ashleigh Barty [WC]
Maria Kirilenko [12] v Nina Bratchikova

Marion Bartoli [13] v Olga Govortsova
Kristyna Pliskova v Qualifier
Francesca Schiavone v Melinda Czink
Kirsten Flipkens [21] v Flavia Pennetta

Alize Cornet [31] v Maria Joao Koehler
Irina Camelia Begu v Silvia Soler Espinosa
Annika Beck v Qualifier
Victoria Azarenka [3] v Elena Vesnina

This is one hell of a quarter. I suspect the Rome runner-up will get through, but any number of women here could surprise.

:: ::

Petra Kvitova [7] v Aravane Rezai [WC]
Shuai Peng v Camila Giorgi
Yanina Wickmayer v Qualifier
Lucie Safarova [25] v Jamie Hampton

Jelena Jankovic [18] v Daniela Hantuchova
Karolina Pliskova v Garbine Muguruza
Kristina Mladenovic v Lauren Davis
Samantha Stosur [9] v Kimiko Date-Krumm

Dominka Cibulkova [16] vLesia Tsurenko
Marina Erakovic v Elena Baltacha
Alexandra Cadantu v Qualifier
Sloane Stephens [17] v Karin Knapp

Tamira Paszek [28] v Melanie Oudin
Jie Zheng v Vesna Dolonc
Eugenie Bouchard v Tsvetana Pironkova
Maria Sharapova [2] v Su-Wei Hsieh

If Sharapova is healthy, she'll win here. If not, your guess is as good as mine. 

The shutters are up for the rest of the day. I can't imagine anyone is around. Still, I'll post comments when moved by the tennis produced between Maria Sharapova and Caroline Wozniacki in the women's final, Rafael Nadal and Juan Martin del Potro in the men's.

One of these days, I'll write the post that has eluded me since then. For the record, I buried my dog two years and thirteen days ago and I still haven't touched a thing on the porch which doubled as his bedroom.

I'm awfully slow when it comes to certain things.

Surely, you've seen both draws by now and read the experts' previews and predictions. I got nothing.

It's been far too long since I've seen a match from beginning to end so I haven't a clue who's in form and who's not, who's injured or sick and who's not, who the oddsmaker's favorites are or which unheralded players have the best chance of storming through the draw and surprising us all with an appearance on Rod Laver Arena late in the second week.

It is Melbourne, after all.

I also haven't a clue how much of the proceedings I'll be able to consume, but I will consume some of it. It's Grand Slam tennis, doggone it, and, by hook or crook, I'm going to enjoy it.

Should I disappear for a week or more, a likely proposition given that the bills I will introduce in the 126th Maine Legislature are due next Friday, January 18th, please use this as your 2013 Australian Open open thread.

Happy New Year.

I have just been elected to the Maine House of Representatives.

I'm beside myself.

I'm not going to turn my back on this blog forever, but I've got a new job to begin in less than a month, and I have no idea how much I will be able to post here going forward.

I'll do my best.

Thanks for reading.