2010 Australian Open - Men's Singles

[xD_aQt]

Now that the draw is out, who will take the crown? Will Rafael Nadal be able to defend his title? Will Roger Federer go on to win his 16th Grand Slam? 2010 promises to be a fantastic year!

[superflya]

saying murray coz i love his potty mouth

[the.watchman]

saying murray coz i love his potty mouth

He's too big a show-off
I sense an upset this year, Verdasco's in top form at the Kooyong Classic.

[superflya]

saying murray coz i love his potty mouth

He's too big a show-off
I sense an upset this year, Verdasco's in top form at the Kooyong Classic.

i reckon verdasco is a bit up himself

[the.watchman]

Murray's worse
A tennis player showing-off biceps (mega fail!)
Verdasco is loud in a more 'cultured' way

[ioaus09]

Lleyton's gone, Australian tennis is ruined (hopefully we return soon). There is no way an Aussie will win it, my bet is Fed for men and Kim Clijsters for women. I hope Murray doesn't win, i really don't like him (even though i have to admit he is pretty good)

[xD_aQt]

Today's Hit for Haiti appeal will be live streamed on australianopen.com where, from 2pm (AEST) you can view the world’s top tennis players compete in a fundraising event at Rod Laver Arena to help raise money for survivors of Tuesday’s Haiti earthquake.

Although it’s the eve of the Australian Open’s first round, world No. 1 Roger Federer has put aside thoughts of his preparation and brought together an entourage of fellow stars to play a special mixed-doubles event at the stadium to support Haiti.

Top-ranked players Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Andy Roddick, Kim Clijsters, Serena Williams, Lleyton Hewitt and Sam Stosur will also give up their last day of preparation to take to the court for the special event that was Federer’s brainchild.

Federer said all proceeds will go to the Haiti earthquake victims, and he hopes to “fill the stadium”.

“I had the idea we could do something to help Haiti after the tragic earthquake. So, I spoke to some other top players ... they said ‘yes, we should do something’,” Federer said.

Ticket sales
The action will start at Melbourne Park from 2pm, and tickets are available from Rod Laver Arena and Federation Square from 9am or at the gate. Entry is $10 for adults and free for children aged under 12.

The play will be mixed doubles matches, with pairings of the star players. Federer had not decided on a partner late Saturday, but joked that he would “choose wisely”. The scoring format is best of two sets and Hawkeye will be used to settle any questionnable calls.

The Swiss star said he was happy to do whatever he could to assist.

“I think it’s something as a tennis family we’re very happy to do. I know it’s on the eve of the first Grand Slam of the season, so it’s for some not so easy maybe mentally to separate, you know, a few things – but I think it’s a great initiative.

Federer encourage Melburnians to come down and support the players and the cause.

“I’m happy we can go through with it and have some fun tomorrow. It may be a nice day also for families to come and see some top players play,” he said.

The devastating earthquake which hit Haiti on Tuesday measured 7.0 on the Richter Scale and has left tens of thousands of people dead. The United Nations has launched an appeal for hundreds of millions of dollars to try to help around three million people in need.

Donations
Donations can be made online to Partners in Health www.pih.org

Fans attending today's match at Melbourne Park will be asked to make a $10 donation.

Come along today if you can guys! Entry is only $10 to watch some of the top players in action and its for a good cause

[periwinkle]

     Seeing the name 'Roger', I thought it referred to a certain former member

[Raymond]

i think that roger federer still has the potential to win this years Aussie open,his side of the draw isnt to bad and his only potentially dangerous opponent is Davydenko since he did lose to him the last two times they battled. In terms of the women's side i think/want Justine Henin to win the open, saw her playing at the Brisbane international and shes still got an awesome back hand and a more compact forehand so shes in pretty good form heading into the open. Although its harder to predict the woman's as there are always major upsets and lower ranked players end up beating most of the hist ranked players..

[RainerWolfram]

I'm so excited

I'm hoping for a Federer/Nadal matchup in the finals.

[brightsky]

I'm so excited

I'm hoping for a Federer/Nadal matchup in the finals.

+100. All Nadal/Federer matchups are epic! I personally hope Federer wins this time, but I'm also hoping for a close game.

[superflya]

im getting sick of nadal and federer

[xD_aQt]

Haha .. they've only played like 20 TIMES

[superflya]

lol they play at the finals of all majors, time for a change

[xD_aQt]

They've only played at 3 of the 4 major finals so far