Australian Open 2022: Predicting the women's singles finalists
The 2022 Australian Open draw was revealed on Thursday, raising the excitement ahead of the first Slam of the season. The obvious favorite for the title is Ashleigh Barty, one of the most consistent players on the WTA tour.
Anett Kontaveit, Simona Halep and Garbine Muguruza are also in contention to lift the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup this month, while young players like Emma Raducanu and Coco Gauff can never be counted out.
On that note, here's predicting the how the tournament might play out.
Top half - Ashleigh Barty continues her dominance
Top seed Ashleigh Barty has a relatively easy path to the fourth round. Camila Giorgi is the only player who could pose a threat, but her talent is offset by her inconsistency and she might not even make it as far as the third round to face Barty.
The World No. 1 is projected to face Naomi Osaka in a blockbuster fourth-round clash. However, the Japanese will first have to find a way past Belinda Bencic, against whom she has lost her last three matches. Given Barty's current form, she will be the favorite to win against either Osaka or Bencic, and secure a spot in the last eight.
@naomiosaka starts her title defence against Camila Osorio.
Going for a trio of #AusOpen trophies 🏆🏆🏆
🇯🇵 @naomiosaka starts her title defence against Camila Osorio.
#AO2022 https://t.co/ESwvUNe01t
Barty could then come up against Maria Sakkari or Ons Jabeur, who are also in this section of the draw. Question marks remain over Jabeur's fitness, given she recently pulled out of her match against Anett Kontaveit at the Sydney International.
Barty has won four of her five meetings with Sakkari and should fancy her chances of making the semifinals, where she will likely face Victoria Azarenka or Barbora Krejcikova.
Predicted semifinals: Ashleigh Barty def. Barbora Krejcikova
Bottom half - Iga Swiatek to advance to second Grand Slam final
The bottom half is stacked with talent. Anett Kontaveit is in red-hot form, but she could be tested early on by either Danielle Collins or Shelby Rogers in the third round. If she gets to the fourth round, she's likely to face Elena Rybakina, with Simona Halep potentially lying in wait in the quarterfinals.
Emma Raducanu and Sloane Stephens are set for an exciting first-round showdown, but both players are going through a rough patch at the moment and are unlikely to make a deep run.
Halep and Garbine Muguruza could meet in the fourth round. Given the Romanian's strong start to 2022, she could move past Muguruza to reach the quarterfinals, where she could face Rybakina or Kontaveit.
Raducanu v Stephens 
Krejcikova v Petkovic 
Bencic v Mladenovic 
Tomljanovic v Badosa 
A few other big first-round women's matches at #AO2022 🍿
🇬🇧 Raducanu v Stephens 🇺🇸
🇨🇿 Krejcikova v Petkovic 🇩🇪
🇨🇭 Bencic v Mladenovic 🇫🇷
🇪🇪 Kontaveit v Siniakova 🇨🇿
🇦🇺 Tomljanovic v Badosa 🇪🇸
🇨🇦 Fernandez v Inglis 🇦🇺
#AusOpen
Considering Aryna Sabalenka's poor start to 2022, it's unlikely she'll make a deep run at the Australian Open, especially with players like Liudmila Samsonova and Marketa Vondrousova in her section.
That leaves Iga Swiatek, who has been handed a rather tricky draw. She could face the in-form Daria Kasatkina in the third round followed by Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the fourth. But the Pole has been quite consistent over the last year or so, so it's difficult to see her losing early.
The former Roland Garros champion could face Angelique Kerber in the quarterfinals and then Halep for a spot in the final. Although both are tough players to beat, Swiatek has the potential to do so.
Predicted semifinals: Iga Swiatek def. Simona Halep
Predicted finalists: Ashleigh Barty and Iga Swiatek