Devvarman to meet Phau in first round of Australian Open

India’s former top ranked player Somdev Devvarman will meet German Bjorn Phau in the first round of the Australian Open, which kicks off in Melbourne on Monday.

27-year-old Devvarman is down to no. 552 in the rankings after missing the first six months of last season due to a shoulder surgery. The Indian needed to use his protected ranking to get into the main draw in Melbourne.

Devvarman, who won his first ATP-level match in more than a year in Chennai last week, will meet the 33-year-old Phau for the first time. Phau is currently ranked no. 78 in the world.

If the Indian were to win that first round, he could run into the no. 24 seed Jercy Janowciz in the second round in Melbourne.

Devvarman has been ranked as high as the top 70 in 2011 but his shoulder injury set him back last year.