Sport lovers have a host of options to choose from this weekend. If you’re not fortunate enough to be in Melbourne to see an event ‘live’, it’s worth tuning-in to watch some of the competition on offer. Having said that, of the two tennis finals and two big football matches only the Grand Final of the W-League is not sold out.
Saturday
Melbourne Park will be rocking with the Women’s Final of the Australian Open at Rod Laver Arena as well as the A-League match between Melbourne Victory and Sydney FC next door at AAMI Park played a few hours beforehand.
In the tennis, defending champion and top seed Victoria Azarenka of Belarus is up against sixth seed Nai Li of China in the Women's Final of the Australian Open. Both women have had a relatively easy run to the Final with Li not dropping a set so far. If Azarenka can pull off a title defence, she will be only the third woman to do so after Jennifer Capriati (2001 and 2002) and Serena Williams (2009 and 2010). Li has said she has “unfinished business” in Australia after a disappointing performance at last year’s tournament when she dipped out in the fourth round. Li will also have the crowd on her side, both courtside and watching around the country, because of Azarenka's controversial medical 'time out' in the dying stages of her win over 19 year old American Sloane Stephens.
Tip: Azarenka in three sets
Apart from what should be a gripping football match, the ‘grudge’ match between the A-League’s two biggest teams will also feature a range of Australia Day themed events including 55 new Aussies who will take part in a Citizenship Ceremony before the match.
Sydney FC had a woeful start to the season - despite their glittering marquee player Alessandro Del Piero - but are starting to string a few tough and gritty wins together under new coach, Frank Farina. With the addition of Joel Griffiths up front to feed off Del Piero and a genuine, but as yet unproven, defender in Tiago, Sydney will be a much tougher prospect than the last time the two teams met. On the other hand, Melbourne Victory on home turf, with a sold out AAMI Park on song, and with bragging rights at stake, will be hard to beat.
Tip: Draw
If you're in Sydney, Australia meets Sri Lanka in a T20 Cricket International at ANZ Stadium on Saturday evening.
Tip: Sri Lanka
Sunday
The same two teams do the rounds again on Sunday – only this time in the Final of the W-League.
It’s the first Grand Final for Melbourne Victory, while Sydney FC have ‘been there and done that’ on two previous occasions, winning in 2010 but losing in 2011.In fact, in the five year history of the W-League, Sydney hasn’t once missed the finals series, but they only just scraped-in to contention this season.
Melbourne has an edge when it comes to bragging rights this season, earning a win and a draw in the return match at home. They’re also coming off the back of a club record seven match undefeated run, so should be going into the match with great confidence.
Between them, the two teams also have three of the four nominees in the Football Media Association’s W-League Player of the Year in Welsh woman Jessica Fishlock (Melbourne Victory) and Teresa Polias and Samantha Kerr (Sydney FC).
Tip: Tough one, but Melbourne Victory are due for a loss - so Sydney FC
If you’re in Melbourne, get along to see the W-League Grand Final on Sunday at AAMI Park with a kick-off at 3.30pm (gates open from 2.30pm). Cost is $15 for adults, $8 for concession and children under 12 free.
We’re going to see the top two 25 year olds in world tennis in the Men’s Final: Novak Djokovic of Serbia and Andy Murray of Scotland.
Born just one week apart, both have played professionally since 2005, and both have had very different childhoods to most of us.
Djokovic was a child in Belgrade at a time when the Balkans War was at its full height and his home town was bombed by NATO. Murray is a survivor of the ‘Dunblane Massacre’, when a crazed gunman entered a primary school and randomly killed 16 children and one teacher before turning the gun on himself (incidentally, six weeks prior to the tragedy at Port Arthur in April 1996).
No wonder both of them can see through a tough five set match!
Up until last year’s US Open, which Murray won against Djokovic, he was seen as the perennial ‘bridesmaid’ at Grand Slam tournaments. His previous best at the Australian Open is runner-up in each of 2010 and 2011. He was also runner-up to Roger Federer, whom he beat in a gripping and gritty five set thriller to get to the Final, at Wimbledon in 2012.
Djokovic has had more career wins so far to date, and he is on a trajectory to at least equal, if not eclipse, Federer if he stays on top as long. After winning the Australian Open last year – for the second year in a row – Djokovic was a semi-finalist at Wimbledon and runner-up in the French and US Opens.
The Djokovic v Murray rivalry is likely to be the one that sets the shape of men's tennis over the next five years or so.
Murray is currently ranked 3rd in the world (but will move to 2nd with Friday night's win), and Djokovic 1st. Djokovic has a 10-7 win-loss record against Murray.
Tip: Djokovic in 4 sets.
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