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Reigning US Open champion Stan Wawrinka needs to improve his game if he hopes to defeat American Steve Johnson and progress into the Australian Open third round. Join The Roar for live scores from around 2.30pm (AEDT).
Wawrinka is one of the finest players on the ATP tour but his inability to play at his best during the opening rounds of Grand Slams nearly cost him dearly against Martin Klizan.
Klizan pushed Wawrinka all the way in the first round before succumbing to the Swiss star in five, enthralling sets.
It’s no secret that Wawrinka is most vulnerable in the opening week of Grand Slam events. From the quarter-final onwards however, Wawrinka is invariably very difficult to beat as evidenced by his three major victories.
As he builds form, the 2014 Australian Open champion will be a major threat to the likes of Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray in the quest for Grand Slam glory at Melbourne Park.
First of all though, Wawrinka has to account for Johnson, who is coming off a straight sets win over Argentine Federico Delbonis.
Johnson is a good player but lacks the firepower and shot-making prowess of Wawrinka, and will struggle to match the Swiss star if Wawrinka finds his range from the backhand side.
In their only career meeting, Wawrinka dispatched Johnson at the 2015 French Open in straight sets. Regardless of the surface, Wawrinka at his best just possesses too much power, skill and experience for Johnson to handle.
As mentioned earlier however, Wawrinka is suspect to producing poor form in the early rounds and it could bite him here.
If Johnson can somehow nab the opening set, Wawrinka will get frustrated and the unforced error count will flow from his racquet, something we have seen all summer to Johnson’s advantage.
Prediction
Wawrinka at his best should win well but his early round form at majors leaves a lot to be desired. Regardless, the Swiss star should be favoured to progress even if he drops a set or two.
Wawrinka in straight sets.
Be sure to join The Roar for live scores of the match from around 2:30pm (AEDT) or at the completion of Jaimee Fourlis and Svetlana Kuznetsova.