Australian Open 2014: Highlighting Early Dark-Horse Threats

By
at Internationaled.org

Published: January 13, 2014

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Tennis season's first Grand Slam is underway in Melbourne as the game's biggest stars take center stage at the 2014 Australian Open.

While all eyes are sure to remain on the favorites, the early rounds offer us a rare opportunity to venture off of the beaten path. 

Below I'll highlight four players who have emerged as early dark-horse threats Down Under.

 

Alexandr Dolgopolov



Ukraine's Alexandr Dolgopolov is flying under the radar coming into the year's first major. But don't sleep on the 25-year-old.

Sure, Dolgopolov was one-and-done in Melbourne a year ago. But keep in mind that we're talking about a player who reached the quarterfinals in Australia in his very first main draw appearance back in 2011. 

After topping Ricardas Berankis in straight sets in the first round, Dolgopolov has set himself up with a very winnable second-round match against France's Jeremy Chardy. Although it remains to be seen whether Dolgopolov is ready to string together a few wins, his performance in Round 1 suggests he's capable of making noise in the first week.

Dolgopolov was superb on serve against Berankis and finished with 37 winners through three sets. If he can play another clean match against Chardy, he has the game to threaten some of the top men's contenders in Australia. 

 

Ekaterina Makarova



The No. 22 seed in the women's draw, Ekaterina Makarova isn't a household name by any means, but she's certainly a dangerous player at the season's first Slam.

The 25-year-old Russian has reached the quarterfinals in each of her past two trips to Melbourne Park and is poised to make another deep run Down Under after coming from behind to defeat Venus Williams in the first round on Day 1, per ESPN.com:

It was a really tough match to play someone like Venus in the first round, she is s...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Tennis

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