Emma Raducanu has been dealt another tough draw at the Australian Open and could meet Aryna Sabalenka as early as the third round.
The British number one is seeded at a major for the first time since 2022 and opens against Thailand’s Mananchaya Sawangkaew, with potential second-round opponents Anastasia Potopova or Suzan Lamens standing between her and the top seed.
Raducanu’s draw and the Sabalenka obstacle
Raducanu, the tournament’s 28th seed, starts against a relative unknown in Mananchaya Sawangkaew and must navigate those early rounds before any blockbuster meeting arrives.
Seedings carry arithmetic implications and, as the draw dictates, players placed between 25 and 32 are slated to encounter a top-eight seed in the third round, barring any major upsets in the first two days.
Her seeding was earned after what the reports describe as a career-high run including 28 victories across the 2025 season, which bought her protection in the opening matches even if the path still looks brutal further on.
There are encouraging numbers and worrying ones; the analysis shows a major win rate of 66 percent compared with 53 on the regular tour, but she has only recorded three wins from 20 attempts against top-ten opponents.
The ninth seed looks firmly in the mood
Sky Sports Tennis
How the early rounds shape up
Aryna Sabalenka, the world number one and two-time champion, begins against French wildcard Tiantsoa Rakotomanga Rajaonah, with the defending champion Madison Keys also nearby in the draw playing Oleksandra Oliynykova.
To reach a potential Sabalenka showdown in round three, Raducanu will probably need to first beat Sawangkaew, who is listed around world number 195, and then overcome either Lamens or Potopova in the second round.
The recent major run has not been kind to Raducanu, with a third-round meeting against Sabalenka at Wimbledon and a heavy defeat by Elena Rybakina in the US Open among the tougher moments of a stop-start grand-slam record.
Men’s draw and British interest
On the men’s side, Italy’s two-time defending champion Jannik Sinner opens against Hugo Gaston while being situated in Novak Djokovic’s half, a placement that makes a semi-final clash between them possible if seeds hold.
World number one Carlos Alcaraz begins against Australia’s Adam Walton and cannot meet Sinner until the final, keeping last season’s big-hitter rematch scenarios alive for the latter stages of the tournament.
British interest extends beyond Raducanu: Sonay Kartal draws Anna Kalinskaya, Katie Boulter meets in-form Belinda Bencic, Cameron Norrie opens with Benjamin Bonzi, Jacob Fearnley faces Kamil Majchrzak, and young Arthur Fery earned a main-draw spot to play Flavio Cobolli.
For Raducanu the draw is both a test and an opportunity; she has shown she can lift her game at the majors but must convert that form into wins against the hardest hitters to make a sustained run at Melbourne Park.
Expectations and optics will be discussed all week: seeded once more yet pitted against a top seed early, Raducanu’s path will be scrutinised by fans and critics alike as she attempts to translate momentum from the 2025 season into grand-slam progress.
No one is handing out easy routes, and the draw has a habit of producing déjà vu for Raducanu, who again faces the prospect of a big-name test in round three if she does everything right in the opening fortnight.
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Christoph Friedrich is a German tennis player and coach currently residing in Oakland, California. He began his tennis journey at the age of eight and has since dedicated his life to the sport. After working as a tennis coach and hitting partner in New York City for eight years, Christoph decided to share his knowledge and experience with tennis players around the world by creating the My Tennis Expert blog. His goal is to make tennis education accessible to everyone and help players select the best equipment for their game, from racquets and strings to shoes and overgrips. Christoph's extensive research and expertise in tennis technology make him a valuable resource for players of all levels.
