MELBOURNE, Australia -- The computer that determined the
Australian Open draw Friday did Lindsay Davenport no favors.
|  | | Lindsay Davenport faces a tough road to defend her Australian Open title. |
The defending champion must open against Jelena Dokic, a
semifinalist last year at Wimbledon and the Sydney Olympics. Dokic,
a 17-year-old Australian, is ranked 24th.
"That's tough for both players," tournament director Paul
McNamee said. "Really rugged. There's a lot of appeal in that
match."
The year's first Grand Slam tournament starts Monday. The men's
side includes a potential blockbuster in the quarterfinals between
sixth-seeded defending champion Andre Agassi and third-seeded Pete
Sampras. Each is trying for his third Australian Open title.
"That's an unbelievable potential quarterfinal matchup,"
McNamee said.
Sampras drew a tough opening match against Slovakian Karol
Kucera. Agassi could face dangerous Spaniard Juan Carlos Ferrero in
the fourth round.
Gustavo Kuerten, the first Brazilian to be seeded No. 1 at a
Grand Slam tournament, will play Argentine Gaston Gaudio in the
opening round. Carlos Moya, 1997 runnerup, will open against former
No. 1 Marcelo Rios, and Jan-Michael Gambill will face Chris
Woodruff in an all-American matchup.
Martina Hingis, the top-seeded woman and a three-time champion,
will open against Katalin Marosi-Aracama of Hungary.
Hingis faces a potential quarterfinal rematch against
sixth-seeded Serena Williams. Hingis beat Williams in the
quarterfinals at Sydney on Thursday, 6-4, 7-5.
No. 3-seeded Venus Williams, bidding for her third consecutive
Grand Slam tournament title, will play a qualifier in the opening
round. Her quarterfinal opponent could be No. 7 Mary Pierce, the
1995 champion, and she could face her sister or Hingis in the
semifinals.
Other possible women's quarterfinals include No. 2 Davenport
against No. 8 Anna Kournikova, and No. 4 Monica Seles against No. 5
Conchita Martinez.
Possible men's quarterfinals include Kuerten against No. 5
Yevgeny Kafelnikov, the 1999 champion; No. 2 Marat Safin against
No. 8 Tim Henman of England; and No. 4 Magnus Norman against No. 7
Lleyton Hewitt of Australia.
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ALSO SEE
Women's Australian Open draw
Men's Australian Open draw
Dokic and father denounce Australia, set to move to U.S.
Australian Open Seeds
Kuerten, Hingis get top seeds for Australian Open
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