Men
Novak Djokovic is the #1 seed in the tournament, but that should come as no surprise. The world's #1 ranked player is coming off an incredible 2011 where he won three out of four majors. Djokovic wore down at the end of last year, but claims he is healthy and ready to go, which makes him the oddsmakers' favorite. Two former number ones, #2 seed Rafael Nadal and #3 seed Roger Federer, want a shot at him, but first they need to put aside their own off-court spat. #4 seed Andy Murray has finished as the runner up the past two years. Some sleepers to keep an eye on would be Argentinian Juan Martin del Porto and Frenchman Richard Gasquet. In my opinion, it is Djokovic's tournament to lose. Personally, I think it gets the job done once again.
Women
The women's field is much more wide open. Caroline Wozniacki got the #1 seed ahead of Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova, who is seeded 2nd. It comes as a bit of a surprise as Wozniacki is still looking for her first major title. Belarusian Victoria Azarenka is the #3 seed and crowd favorite Maria Sharapova is #4. The last two Australian Open champions, Kim Clijsters (hip) and Serena Williams (ankle), were both injured last week in the Brisbane International. They are seeded #12 and #13 respectively. Williams is always among the favorites in this tournament, but it remains to be seen how healthy she is. Some sleepers to keep an eye on would be Estonian Kaia Kanepi and Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. Kanepi is coming off a win at the Brisbane International. I'm picking Petra Kvitova to win. She is quickly closing in on Wozniacki's world #1 ranking and already has one major win to her name. I think she will make a statement by winning a second.
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