What Djokovic court failure means for Aus Open

Italian Salvatore Caruso is indebted to the tennis gods after an extraordinary turn of events catapulted him into the men’s Australian Open singles draw.

The federal court’s decision to uphold Novak Djokovic’s visa cancellation means Caruso will take the place of the world No.1 in the first round of the Australian Open, beginning on Monday.

That’s despite the 29-year-old having failed to qualify for the tournament via an Australian Open lead-up event.

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Caruso, ranked 150 in the world and now being branded a ‘lucky loser’, will meet Serbian Miomir Kecmanovic in the first round of the Melbourne Park event.

Caruso was beaten in the semi-finals of a lower-tier tournament in the country Victorian town of Bendigo.

He was defeated in the final round of Australian Open qualifying by Taro Daniel and has never had a higher rank than 76 in the world.

Kecmanovic is ranked 78 in the world.

Djokovic‘s failed court bid has boosted the Australian Open title chances of the likes of Daniil Medvedev, Alexander Zverev, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Rafael Nadal, while Aslan Karatsev is a dark horse.

Someone other than Djokovic will win the Australian Open for the first time since Roger Federer claimed a second title in succession in 2018.

The last time someone other than Djokovic or Federer won at Melbourne Park was when Stan Wawrinka was victorious in 2014.

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