PREVIEW | TOKYO OLYMPICS
Golden slam in Djokovic's sights as home spotlight shines on Osaka
33 years after Steffi Graf defeated Gabriela Sabatini in Seoul, we may see another player close in on one of the rarest sporting feats: The Golden Slam.
With the 2021 Australian Open, Roland Garros and Wimbledon titles already stashed away in his bulging trophy cabinet, Novak Djokovic is on the hunt for the US Open and his first Olympic gold medal.
The world no.1 is favourite to do so but we all remember how history slipped from the grasp of Serena Williams at Flushing Meadows in 2015 at the second last stop.
Speaking of the four-time gold medalist, Williams is one of the few top women who will not hit the courts of Ariake Tennis Park. Attention is set to fall on Naomi Osaka as she attempts to delight home fans after her recent break from competition.
With the event haunted by the pandemic, public disapproval and PR gaffes, let's hope that we have some great memories of the play on court after finals day on August 1st.
The singles draws have been made so let's take a look at them in more detail.
MEN'S DRAW
The world's best player arrived in Tokyo with more baggage than usual for an event.
Novak Djokovic has painful Olympic memories from three previous visits. While he lost to Nadal in 2008 (semis) and Murray in 2012 (semis), Djokovic's real nemesis has been the Tower of Tandil.
Juan Martin del Potro, who is again recuperating from injury, snatched the bronze medal from the Serb in London and then dumped a tearful Djokovic out in the first round of Rio.
To the world no.1's relief, del Potro won't be an obstacle to overcome in Tokyo along with fellow absentees Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Dominic Thiem and Stan Wawrinka.
The tournament looks ready made for Serbian success as the 34-year-old arrives brimming with the confidence of three straight grand slams.
Djokovic certainly has an inviting start in his pursuit of a gold medal as he takes on world no.139 Hugo Dellien first. From there, he is projected to meet Jan Lennard Struff (second round) and potentially Lorenzo Musetti in the third.
Assuming that Djokovic makes it to the last eight, it's likely - but not a given - that Andrey Rublev will stand in the way of a last four clash with Alexander Zverev, Hubert Hurkacz or Aslan Karatsev.
It's a pretty good draw for Djokovic but he knows more than anyone that Olympic tennis events often come with surprises.
On the other half of the draw, second seed Daniil Medvedev will be encouraged by his early path.
Alexander Bublev is a tricky customer first up but the Russian has beaten him in their previous two meetings, including a straight sets win at Roland Garros this year.
If in decent form, the world no.2 should really make it to the quarter-finals at least where he's likely to meet Pablo Carreno Busta, Marin Cilic, Felix Auger-Aliassime or maybe even Andy Murray.
That's a tough cohort of players to overcome. Should the 25-year-old reach the final four stage, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Karen Khachanov or Diego Schwartsman are potentially in the mix.
From where I'm sitting, Alexander Zverev has the best draw of the top seeds.
It would be an absolute shock if the German fails to find a route through Yen-Hsun Lu (opener), Daniel Elahi Galan or Mohamed Safwat to the third round. He may face the streaky Nikoloz Basilashvili or Lorenzo Sonego there but I'd still expect a Zverev victory.
The 24-year-old's medal chances probably hinge on a tough quarter-final with someone like Hurkacz or Karatsev, followed by Mr. Djokovic in the last four.
In terms of upsets, I'm firmly looking in the direction of Tsitsipas v Philipp Kohlschreiber in the first round. The Greek is out of sorts after that opening round loss at Wimbledon was followed by an early exit in Hamburg. Unless the 22-year-old can find form fast, the German veteran or maybe Francis Tiafoe (second round) can take advantage.
Andy Murray is of course the double defending gold medalist but he received a horrendous first round opponent in Auger-Aliassime. While the Scot will surely be up for the challenge, I doubt he wants to face another young, athletic, hard-hitting Canadian so soon after Wimbledon.
WOMEN'S DRAW
While the men's competition is lacking some wattage given all the absences, the same cannot be said for the women. Eight of the WTA’s top 10 are in Tokyo with world no.1 Ash Barty and home hope Naomi Osaka the headliners.
Fresh from her maiden Wimbledon title, Ash Barty has been handed a fairly enticing draw in Tokyo. It would be quite an upset for the 25-year-old to fall to world no.48 Sara Sorribes Tormo in the first round.
From there, the most significant threats are surely Roland Garros champion Barbora Krejcikova, who she could meet in the quarters, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova or potentially Jessie Pegula.
However, while they're excellent players, I doubt that Barty's camp will be particularly fearful of the cohort. I believe that the Aussie has a solid chance to make the last four.
After withdrawing from Roland Garros, and skipping Wimbledon, it will be interesting to see where Naomi Osaka's game is. I doubt anyone envies the pressure she's under as the face of Japan's Olympic Games.
At least the draw favours her in the early rounds. The world no.2 should have more than enough for Saisai Zheng in the opening round and I think that Marketa Vondrousova may be the only realistic threat before the last eight.
The standard will jump enormously in the last eight, particularly if Iga Swiatek makes it through. As we know by now, the Pole is a player to fear.
If Osaka gets to the semis, potential opponents include Karolina Pliskova, Elina Svitolina, Ons Jabeur or Maria Sakkari.
At her best, the 23-year-old is the best woman in the world on hard courts. The question is: given all that's happened, what level can she find in Tokyo?
The middle quarters here have the look of a (metaphorical) blood bath with Aryna Sabalenka, Petra Kvitova, Garbine Muguruza and Elena Rybakina all in the second. Meanwhile, Pliskova, Svitolina, Jabeur, Sakkari, Jelena Ostapenko, Jennifer Brady and Anett Kontaveit lurk in the third.
Anything can happen on hard courts at the Olympics so be prepared for some upsets.
One potential upset that leaps out from the page is Aryna Sabalena's opener with Magda Linette.
While the Belarusian is formidable on hard courts, Linette is in great form having dispatched Amanda Anisimova and Elina Svitolina from Wimbledon. One to keep an eye on.
Come this way for all the Tokyo Olympics draws.
The action starts this Saturday July 24th at 11am local time or 2am GMT.
Olympic tennis will be shown on BBC, RTÉ and Eurosport in the UK & Ireland.