The eye of Mats Wilander: “Australia is the easiest Major to win if you love competition”

The particularity of the Australian Open is that it arrives very early in the season. Some players are not ready, although they all are at Wimbledon. To succeed in Melbourne, you have to both forget this calendar, which makes you attack the year with a Major, and love the competition more than anything: “I know I’m not at 100% but I’m going to fight like a dog.” Especially since it only takes two or three matches in five sets to find your bearings. Finishing the previous year very late is also an advantage: there is no break, you are on the momentum of this end of season and you move on naturally. There are almost no tournaments to prepare for. I read that 50% of the players who won the Australian Open had not played in an official tournament beforehand. It does not surprise me.