Doubles draws set to sizzle at AO 2021

Reigning Australian Open doubles champions Timea Babos (HUN) and Kristina Mladenovic (FRA), and Rajeev Ram (USA) and Joe Salisbury (GBR), will return to defend their titles at AO 2021.

These dynamic duos are among several exciting combinations set to team up for the Australian Open from 8-21 February 2021.

With the men’s entry list featuring several new partnerships and the women’s highlighted by notable singles players teaming up, the doubles tournaments will add to the exciting tennis on offer for fans at Melbourne Park.

Heading the women’s list is top-ranked duo Hsieh Su-Wei (TPE) and Barbora Strycova (CZE), who finished runner-up to Babos and Mladenovic in the AO 2020 final.

Babos and Mladenovic, two-time AO champions who have appeared in the past three finals at Melbourne Park, went on to win the Roland Garros title in 2020. 

Also set to take part are Aryna Sabalenka (BLR) and Elise Mertens (BEL), the 2019 US Open champions who won the recent WTA title in Ostrava, as are Laura Siegemund (GER) and Vera Zvonareva (RUS), the 2020 US Open winners.

In a boost to the already-strong draw, reigning AO singles champion Sofia Kenin (USA) will team up with world No.12 Belinda Bencic (SUI), while world No.1 Ash Barty (Qld) will partner US Open semifinalist Jennifer Brady (USA).

The 2019 AO champions Sam Stosur (Qld) and Zhang Shuai (CHN) will also team up again.

Japanese pair Misaki Doi and Nao Hibino have been awarded the Asia-Pacific women’s doubles wildcard.

Reuniting on the men’s side are Jamie Murray (GBR) and Bruno Soares (BRA), the AO 2016 champions who have won two Grand Slam doubles titles together.

Soares’ former partner Mate Pavic (CRO), the 2018 AO champion with Oliver Marach, joins forces with Nikola Mektic (CRO), the reigning AO mixed doubles champion (with Barbora Krejcikova). Mektic was in 2020 playing alongside Wesley Koolhof (NED), who will team up with Lukasz Kubot (POL) at AO 2021. Kubot’s previous partner, Marcelo Melo (BRA), will partner Horia Tecau (ROU).

Several former AO champions are on the entry list, including Australia’s John Peers (Vic) – the 2017 champion who will play with New Zealand’s Michael Venus – and French duo Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut, the 2019 winners.

Two more Australians, Max Purcell (NSW) and Luke Saville (SA), will look to repeat their AO 2020 heroics that saw them reach the final before falling to Ram and Salisbury.

Headlining the list is leading Colombian duo Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah, who together won the 2019 Wimbledon and US Open trophies.

Also teaming up are Felix Auger-Aliassime (CAN) and Hubert Hurkacz (POL), Denis Shapovalov (CAN) and Vasek Pospisil (CAN), and Casper Ruud (NOR) and Miomir Kecmanovic (SRB). 

Auger-Aliassime and Hurkacz, two of the ATP’s most impressive rising stars in singles, incredibly won November’s Paris Masters title in just their second event together.

Korea’s Ji Sung Nam and Min-Kyu Song have received the Asia-Pacific men’s doubles wildcard. Additional doubles wildcards will be announced in due course.

AO 2021 – Australian doubles pairings (as at 30 December 2020)