A year after a tournament-opening loss at the Australian Open, Alexander Shevchenko faces four-time Slam champion Carlos Alcaraz in Monday's first round, hoping to do the impossible under the lights at Margaret Court Arena.
Alcaraz is chasing a Career Grand Slam Down Under, where he has never made it past the quarter-final in three attempts but has always avoided first-round exits.
Match preview
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World No. 72 Shevchenko might have cursed his luck after learning his Australian Open first-round fate had him facing Alcaraz.
A year after losing to Spaniard Jaume Munar in straight sets (6-3, 6-3, 6-1), the 24-year-old has been paired with another Spaniard, only this time the task is significantly more daunting for the Russian-born Kazakhstani player.
Although last year was Shevchenko's debut Down Under, his tournament-opening exits in two main draw appearances at Wimbledon and the US Open highlight the 24-year-old's struggles at the Majors, with consecutive second-round matches at Roland Garros being anomalies in his seven appearances at Slams.
With a second tour clash against Alcaraz slated for his return to the first top event of 2025, the world No. 72 would be forgiven for not expecting much before stepping onto the court, given the precedent.
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The Spanish sensation might not have had any competitive 2025 action heading into Monday's tournament opener, but he enters the contest motivated to end the fortnight as the fifth man in the Open Era to complete the Career Grand Slam.
Only Andre Agassi, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic have achieved that feat, and the four-time Slam champion aims to join that illustrious company in two weeks.
However, the third seed has often disappointed in Australia, suffering a second-round exit in 2021, losing in the third round a year later and exiting in the quarter-finals 12 months ago to Alexander Zverev.
Although he recovered to claim the Masters 1000 title at Indian Wells before clinching consecutive majors in Paris and Wimbledon, the 21-year-old yearns to sparkle from the off Down Under.
Alcaraz's potential path to a fifth major could mean a fourth-round match-up with Jack Draper, a quarter-final meeting with Djokovic and a semi-final clash with Zverev, pointing to the need to generate enough momentum before those tricky ties.
Having stuttered at the final major of 2024, exiting in round two at Flushing Meadows, the precociously talented Spaniard will aim for a strong showing in Australia to put that disappointment behind him.
Head To Head
Madrid Masters (2024) - Round of 64: Alcaraz 6-2 6-1
Alcaraz defeated Shevchenko quite comfortably in their only meeting on the ATP Tour to seal a comfortable passage to the round of 32 on the clay courts in Madrid last year.
Although the unseeded 24-year-old has a 2-8 record against top-10 opponents, his October 2023 victory over Taylor Fritz in Basel and last year's success over Holger Rune in Rotterdam were on hard courts, possibly indicating some giant-killing expertise when it comes together.
We say: Alcaraz to win in three sets
Despite his proclivity for blowing hot and cold, Alcaraz should seal a routine three-set victory over Shevchenko to set up a second-round match against Yoshihito Nishioka or Aziz Dougaz.
The Spaniard has never been eliminated in round one of a Major, and that run should continue at the world No. 72's expense.
