The Australian Open 2015 is ready to start with the first round on Sunday and Monday from Melbourne and ESPN will have full channel coverage with live streams for matches and things begin past 9 pm ET each night as the men and women's brackets play out with Roger Federer, Serena Williams, Victoria Azarenka, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, Maria Sharapova and Eugenie Bouchard.
Serena Williams remains one of the favorites on the women's side and Azarenka comes in after dealing with injuries last year and she will play against Sloane Stephens to open things up. Maria Sharapova will be on the other side and she will be potentially meeting up with Eugenie Bouchard down the line. Serena Williams will play Alison Van Uytvanck in the first round and ti will be Monday when things start in Australia.
Juan Martin Del Potro and Caroline Wozniacki are out with injuries for the Australian Open and that leaves out two of the bigger names for the tournament. Williams, Nadal and Federer are plenty of star power and the top people are hoping those names make it through the brackets. Nadal has been dealing with injuries and some less than stellar performances, but he has away of turning things on when it's needed the most and that could happen this year in Melbourne.
Nadal said he is not even close to being one of the favorites, but he did end up in a better side of the bracket and in a solid spot compared to what he could be in. Nadal is one of the top players in the tournament and he comes in after dealing with a wrist injury and he is looking to add another major to his already 14 Grand Slams. Andy Murray comes in at number six, with Djokovic at one and Federer at two and Nadal is third among that group.
Nadal is hoping for a bounce back after dealing with various ailments and the wrist issue was a problem and he also has appendix surgery that kept him out for nearly all year in 2014. Nadal won the French Open to keep his streak at Roland Garros going and now he hopes to get off to a positive start in 2015. Nadal won three other titles last year and he did not get off to a good start with a first round loss in Qatar and that is what makes this important.
ESPN is killing it with tennis coverage, as they will air the entire Australian Open and they are also putting in over 800 hours of live tennis online. The tournament has Stan Wawrinka coming in to defend his title and things will be mainly on ESPN2 for the main coverage and should start past 9 pm ET and play through the morning. ESPN will also have some coverage, but the bulk of the coverage will be from ESPN2 and the WatchESPN website online.
Check here for the Australian Open 2015 schedule and live coverage from ESPN.
