Novak Djokovic picked against all odds to win Australian Open over Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner and others by Sam Querrey

Novak Djokovic has won the Australian Open ten times. According to a former player, he'll do it once more as Sam Querrey picked Djokovic to win the 2025 Australian Open. The choice isn't controversial though; very few would disagree with him.

In fact, his co-host on the Tennis Channel panel, where he said it, disagreed with him. The Serbian hasn't won a Grand Slam in over a year, and his draw is extremely tough. Even so, Querrey was adamant that Djokovic will be able to get it done, though he did add that he wasn't overly confident in his pick. He said:

"It's been 15 years he's been beating Nadal and Federer, Murray, Wawrinka. You think he's worried about these other players? No way. I'm picking him to win it. I didn't care what the draw looked like. I picked him before the draw came out. I'm picking him after the draw. Not overly confident, but I'm picking him to win it."

As a former player, Querrey knows fully well how strong Djokovic is and how good you need to be to beat him. He's been more vulnerable in recent times, losing to Reilly Opelka in Brisbane recently, but that didn't dissuade Querrey from picking him to go all the way.

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"We've got Opelka in there" - Querrey on Novak Djokovic's first tough matchup in Melbourne

Djokovic has a really tough draw. He has Carlos Alcaraz in his quarter and a couple of other solid players including Reilly Opelka. What makes Opelka a very interesting name to watch is the fact that the American beat him in their most recent clash.

It was a wonderful display from the big-serving player, though his status for the Australian Open is questionable. He retired from the Brisbane final against Jiri Lehecka due to a back issue but he's set to play as per the most recent available information.

If so, Querrey is eager to see what kind of match would follow between Djokovic and Opelka, especially in light of how their most recent one went. He said (via Tennis Channel):

"We've got Reilly Opelka in there that could be a potential Djokovic - Opelka third matchup. Opelka beat him in Brisbane to start the year. I don't wanna look ahead. Hopefully he's fine. He had a bit of a back injury. That could be an interesting third-round match if we get there."

Time will tell whether Djokovic does end up facing Opelka, but even if he doesn't, there are a couple of players who will certainly try to make his life miserable. Most notable among them is Carlos Alcaraz, who is a potential quarterfinal matchup for the 10-time champion.