Australian Open 2025 women's singles draw: Biggest winner and loser ft. Naomi Osaka, Coco Gauff

The excitement continues to build for the Australian Open 2025, and the main draw was revealed on Thursday (January 9). Most of the top stars from the WTA Tour are ready to duke it out to reign supreme Down Under. Two-time defending champion and World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka is bidding to capture her third title on the trot.

Iga Swiatek and Coco Gauff are looking to add a title in Melbourne to their ever-growing trophy cabinet. Elena Rybakina faltered in the summit clash here two years ago, and will look to right that wrong this time.

All women got to know their potential opponents throughout seven rounds in Melbourne, and some breathed a sigh of relief, while others could only curse at their luck. Here's a look at who got lucky with the Australian Open 2025 draw and who didn't:

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Biggest losers: Naomi Osaka has the hardest draw among the big guns, followed by Coco Gauff

Coco Gauff and Naomi Osaka at the Australian Open 2020. (Photo: Getty)

Both Coco Gauff and Naomi Osaka have landed in the same section of the draw and are on course to meet in the fourth round. However, they'll have to navigate a minefield of big threats before their highly-anticipated clash materializes.

Osaka drew former top 10 player Caroline Garcia in the first round, who beat her twice last year, including in the first round of the Australian Open. Karolina Muchova is likely to await her in the second round, who ousted her in the second round of last year's US Open.

Osaka bump into could either Jelena Ostapenko or Belina Bencic in the third round. While the Latvian is out of form at the moment, the Swiss leads their head-to-head 3-1, so that's another tough opponent for her. If she gets through these players, then a fourth-round date with Gauff is her reward.

World No. 7 Jessica Pegula is Osaka's predicted quarterfinal opponent, followed by a likely semifinal showdown with two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka. Iga Swiatek or Elena Rybakina could be her opponents in the final. With the world's very best in her path, the former Australian Open champion has no margin for error.

Gauff is in great form at the moment, and that's going to be put to the test in Melbourne. She's up against Sofia Kenin in the first round. They've crossed paths thrice before, and the latter has won twice.

Kenin first beat Gauff en route to the Australian Open 2020 title and upset her in the first round of Wimbledon 2023. Even though the former Melbourne champion is inconsistent these days, she's known to take out a top player or two from time to time.

Gauff can breathe easy in the second round, with either Leolia Jeanjean or Jodie Burrage being her potential opponents. She's likely to meet former US Open finalist Leylah Fernandez in the third round, followed by either Muchova or Osaka in the fourth round.

Pegula leads Gauff 4-2 in the head-to-head, and the two could meet in the quarterfinals. The 20-year-old could bump into two-time defending champion Sabalenka in the semifinals, who beat her at this stage last year as well, followed by a showdown for the title with either Swiatek or Rybakina.

Osaka will need to be at her best in every round, while Gauff will have some leeway in the second round but otherwise will need to be on her toes. No other player will be envious of their draw for sure.

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Biggest winner: Iga Swiatek wins the draw lottery as most of her chief rivals end up in the opposite half of the Australian Open 2025 draw

Iga Swiatek at the Australian Open 2025. (Photo: Getty)

Lady luck was on Iga Swiatek's side as most of her main rivals didn't end up in the same half as her at the Australian Open 2025. She will begin her campaign against Katerina Siniakova, who has a 3-11 record in Melbourne. Neither Katie Volynets nor Rebecca Sramkova are likely to give her a tough time in the second round.

Swiatek's possible opponents in the third round include Amanda Anisimova, Emma Raducanu, and Ekaterina Alexandrova. However, the American is dealing with an injury, and retired before her quarterfinal showdown at the Hobart International on Thursday (January 9).

Raducanu and Alexandrova will lock horns in the first round. The former is also injured and pulled out from the ASB Classic at the start of the year. The latter did beat her in Miami last year but has been quite inconsistent for months now. Swiatek will have the upper hand if she meets any one of them.

The Pole could meet last year's quarterfinalist Anna Kalinskaya in the fourth round, who's also injured and not at her best. Victoria Azarenka is another possible opponent at this stage, and Swiatek leads their head-to-head 3-1.

World No. 8 Emma Navarro is her projected opponent in the quarterfinal. She's in the middle of a slump and has won only one of her last six matches. Ons Jabeur could also make it this far, and the Pole enjoys a 5-2 advantage in their rivalry.

Swiatek could face either Rybakina or Jasmine Paolini in the semifinals. She recently beat the Kazakh at the United Cup and has never lost to the Italian. All of her biggest rivals, Sabalenka, Gauff, and Pegula, could be her probable opponents in the final. Given her draw, she could either match her best result with a semifinal showing or surpass it as well this time.