Novak Djokovic backed to beat Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal to Australian Open - Becker
NOVAK DJOKOVIC has more chance of winning the Australian Open than Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
That is according to Boris Becker, who won the tournament in 1991 and 1996.
The World No 1 has triumphed at the last two Grand Slams with victory at Wimbledon and the US Open.
He has now set his sights on a record seventh title down under.
Roger Federer finished the 2018 season in disappointing style.
In his quest for his 100th ATP title, he was beaten in the finals of the Paris Masters and ATP World Tour finals, meaning the milestone has had to wait until the new year.
Rafael Nadal will also be keen to make amends after withdrawing from the Paris Masters.
Minor ankle surgery then forced him out of the season finale at the O2 Arena in London.
According to Becker, Djokovic is the frontrunner for glory in Melbourne.
“I would call Novak the favourite for the tournament,” he said.
“Though I wouldn’t call his result against [Roberto] Bautista-Agut last week a shock loss.
“Bautista-Agut is a top 15 player and has been for a long time.
"On his day, he can beat anybody, including Novak.
“But Novak will recover, the journey from Doha is quite long but he has a week to get ready for his first round match. So, yes, he starts as favourite."
With the Serbian at the peak of his career, it’s been thrown into question whether he can maintain fitness and sustain this high level of performance.
“I think he’s a student of the game, he can tell you who’s won where and how many times they’ve won,” Becker added.
“I think he’s constantly trying to improve, there isn’t a match where he’s thought he’s been perfect.
“He’s always looking for ways to get better, ways to improve even after winning so much.
“I think the same goes for Roger [Federer] and Rafa [Nadal] as well by the way. I think he loves to compete, it’s in his nature.”