The fifth day of the 2013 Australian Open promises to be one of the best of the week with so many matches containing two seeded players. First up is the German dark horse, Angelique Kerber who faces talented American Madison Keys. This match could be very entertaining if Keys can produce the sort of form that has her being mentioned as a potential future Grand Slam champion. Kerber has impressed so far and I'm still of the belief that she might just be able to spoil the Azarenka and Williams party. Both of these players have beaten quality opposition this week so something has to give tonight. I like Keys and if she gets the right draw she could be forcing her way into the second week of major tournaments but tonight I have to go with the more experienced Angelique Kerber.
Novak Djokovic returns to Rod Laver tonight having given two exhibitions in his first two matches. He is playing incredibly well and in this form I don't see anybody beating him. Paul-Henri Mathieu and Ryan Harrison are two good players and neither were able to get any success against the Serb. Radek Stepanek is a dangerous opponent and he will take the game to Djokovic with aggressive serve and volley play. That just won't get it done for me. Djokovic is going to keep his high standards again tonight with a comfortable win.
Many people are talking of a Sharapova-Williams final but for Sharapova, she cannot look beyond the other Williams sister. Venus Williams has looked very impressive in her opening two games and she will relish this opportunity. Sharapova has yet to drop a single game but I can guarantee she won't find it that easy to beat Williams. Venus is more than capable of winning this one and if she's at her best then I think she could expose the weak second serve of Maria. I really am torn between these two and so only because Venus hasn't won a major in so long I will give a hesitant nod to Sharapova.
Following that one David Ferrer will continue his campaign against Marcos Baghdatis in what could be cracker. A lot of people have said that Baghdatis could upset Ferrer simply because of his previous form in Melbourne but people often overlook Ferrer's results here. I don't see Baghdatis beating Ferrer simply because Ferrer will outlast him and is a far more consistent player. Ferrer doesn't lose too often anymore and Baghdatis won't taste success tonight. Ferrer in four.
Na Li will have a tough match when she faces Sorana Cirstea but it's hard to look beyond the Chinese star. Li should win this one in two tight sets. Joining her in round three should be Ana Ivanovic who faces compatriot Jelena Jankovic in a battle of two players returning to form. Jankovic has played much better in recent months but Ivanovic is much further along her comeback than Jankovic. For that reason, I'm going with Ivanovic.
Agnieszka Radwanska has impressed me so far this week and I don't see Heather Watson troubling her tonight. Watson will be trying to copy Laura Robson and beat a top seed but Radwanska is a much more consistent player then the Kvitova that Robson faced last night. As long as this game is of a higher standard than that Robson-Kvitova match it will be worth watching. Radwanska in two. Kevin Anderson is always a danger but I don't think he will beat Fernando Verdasco tonight. Verdasco has been impressive this week and he should have too many shots for the South African.
Tomas Berdych faces Austrian Jurgen Melzer in round three tonight and I think the quality will be high here. Melzer is well able to trade with the best and will fancy himself to push Berdych. However, I still think the Czech star has a blockbuster meeting with Djokovic in the quarter final to look forward to. So he won't be beat tonight, Berdych in three close sets. Marion Bartoli is expected to come through her match against Ekatorina Makarova but I'm not convinced. Makarova is a very talented player and I see her beating Bartoli tonight in a close game.
Sam Querrey was lucky Brian Baker got hurt in his last game and I think his luck will run out now as he faces Stanislas Wawrinka. Wawrinka has been hitting well since I saw him last week at an exhibition event. Wawrinka in three. Julien Benneteau has had a good run this week but I see that run ending as he faces Janko Tipsarevic tonight. Tipsy has been in great form and should do enough to make the fourth round and the second week.
Kei Nishikori should overcome Mikhail Youzhny's conqueror Evgeny Donskoy in four sets tonight, while I see an upset in the women's draw when Jie Zheng faces 18th seed Julia Goerges. Valeria Savinyk had a great win over Dominika Cibulkova and I have a hunch she will score another upset against Kirsten Flipkens. Finally, Nicolas Almagro will face Jerzy Janowicz on show court three in what could be a classic. Janowicz struggled mentally after a poor line call against Devvarman in the last round but he showed great resolve to comeback with a bang, almost literally, as he hit his way to victory in time losing very few games in the final three sets. I like Almagro and he has a chance to take a step further up the rankings if he can move into week two but I'm going to go with Janowicz to get a major upset in this one.
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