Three to See: A test match for Kyrgios vs. Tsonga at Australian Open

Before each day's play at the Australian Open, we'll preview and predict three must-see matches.

Kyrgios said he had fun in his only previous meeting with Tsonga, in Marseille last year, despite the fact that it ended in a three-set defeat. The 22-year-old Aussie grew up loving the 32-year-old Frenchman’s flamboyant, above-the-rim style of play, and you can see a lot of that style in the way Kyrgios approaches the game. Put the two together, and you have the makings of an explosive night match in Laver.

As for who will win it, Kyrgios is at home, is coming off a tournament win in Brisbane and seems to be in a positive frame of mind—at the moment. But Tsonga is coming off an electrifying comeback win over Denis Shapovalov from 2-5 down in the fifth. By the end, he was playing unstoppable tennis. With Jo, though, that doesn’t mean he’s going to be unstoppable again. Winner: Kyrgios

Tennis Channel Live on what's next for Nick Kyrgios and Grigor Dimitrov:

Was Dimitrov’s brush with disaster against Mackenzie McDonald a wake-up call or a death knell? If he has designs on the title here, Dimitrov shouldn’t be forced to go deep into a fifth set to scratch his way past the world No. 186. But at the same time, scratching through on off days is something that Grand Slam title winners must do every now and then.

What we know for certain is that Dimitrov will need to play better from the start against Rublev, who has recorded wins over two quality veterans, David Ferrer and Marcos Baghdatis, in his first two matches in Melbourne. More ominously for Dimitrov, the hard-hitting 20-year-old beat him in straight sets, in their only meeting, at the US Open last year. Winner: Rublev

In this intra-national battle of Ukrainians, Svitolina is the heavy favorite. She’s ranked No. 6 and is the choice of many—including myself—to win the tournament. Kostyuk, by contrast, is 15 years old and ranked 521st. But the fact that she’s the youngest player to reach the third round of a major in this century tells you that she possesses special talent.

Watching her first two matches in Melbourne, it was hard to tell much difference between Kostyuk and the veteran pros that surrounded her; she can, if nothing else, rip a forehand with anyone. Svitolina, meanwhile, lost her forehand somewhere along the way during her slump-shouldered three-set win over Katerina Siniakova on Wednesday. She’ll need to find it again soon. Winner: Svitolina

Read Joel Drucker and Nina Pantic on TENNIS.com as they report from the Australian Open, and watch them each day on The Daily Mix:

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