Our sequence of Australian Open previews starts with two potentially overlooked matches away from the main arenas. In the first round, some of the best action happens on the smaller stages.

Julia Goerges versus Belinda Bencic

A theme that often emerges at the majors concerns the youth movement.  People are always looking for the next rising star.  One of the more promising prospects in women’s tennis is Swiss teenager Belinda Bencic.  She made waves last season, and she is looking to continue her ascent up the rankings with a good run in Melbourne, starting with her first match against Germany’s Julia Goerges.

Bencic certainly has reason to be relatively confident about her odds against the German.  She only reached the second round in Melbourne a year ago, but the defeat came to eventual champion Li Na in a match in which the young Swiss pushed Li to a tiebreak in the second set.  That match put her on the radar, and after compiling other noteworthy results, such as her semifinal showing in Charleston and breakthrough quarterfinal finish at the US Open, she saw her ranking rise over 100 places.  Bencic now sits just outside the top 30, and despite an opening loss in the Sydney tune-up event, she remains in a good position to build on her success of last year in Melbourne.

Bencic’s opponent, Goerges, has not enjoyed the same kind of good fortune lately.  A string of early losses have seen the German falter from her perch among the top 20 to her current ranking of No. 71.  But if ever there were a venue where Goerges might right the ship, it would be in Melbourne.  She loves the hard courts and says that the Australian Open is her favorite tournament.  That is perhaps not surprising, considering it is also her best major, having reached the fourth round here in both 2012 and 2013.  After a decent quarterfinal finish in Auckland, she probably likes her chances of finding a way to book a trip to the second week of this tournament once again.

Of the pair, Goerges is the player in a better position to control her destiny in this first-round encounter.  She is physically the slightly more imposing of the two, and her groundstrokes are much harder and more penetrating.  The problem for Goerges, however, is that she does not have a lot of margin for error on her shots, and she can easily become erratic.  Bencic is better equipped to be more consistent, and assuming she can keep the ball deep, that consistency may be all she needs to emerge with a victory.  Furthermore, despite being the higher-ranked player in this contest, as a very young player who sees nothing but possibilities before her, Bencic is less likely to feel the pressure in the big moments.

At any other venue, the odds would probably favor Bencic, but this is Melbourne.  Outside Germany, it is one of the places where Goerges plays her best ball.  It should be interesting to see whether youth or experience wins out in this intriguing matchup. 

Caroline Garcia versus Svetlana Kuznetsova

One of the captivating things about live sports is that they are unpredictable.  It is impossible to know how great or how bad a contest will be strictly by looking at the matchup on paper.  A case in point can be found in the bottom quarter of the women’s draw where Caroline Garcia is set to play Svetlana Kuznetsova.  As far as opening matches go, this one could be a hidden gem.  Whether or not it lives up to that hype has yet to be determined.

Fans of Garcia will anxiously be hoping that she can get something going in Melbourne and finally begin to realize the potential so many see in her.  She has been on the cusp of some big wins already in her young career.  She very nearly upended Maria Sharapova a few years ago at Roland Garros and gave Serena Williams all she could handle last year in Miami.  She also scooped up her first title last season and sits firmly within the top 40.  With her talent, however, Garcia and her fans know she cannot be content with stopping there.

Kuznetsova has already accomplished what Garcia dreams of doing.  It is easy to forget, but the Russian is a former US Open and Roland Garros singles champion.  She has 14 singles titles to her name and has been ranked No. 2.  Unfortunately for Kuznetsova, her play can often be as awful as it is brilliant, which has led to more than a few head-scratching results.  But she has managed to play steady enough in recent months to earn herself the 27th seed at this year’s Australian Open, and no doubt she will be looking to improve upon her first-round exit of last year.

Theoretically, Kuznetsova has the edge in walking away with the win against the young Frenchwoman.  She is unquestionably the better mover of the two and is more willing and able to utilize greater variety in her game.  Garcia is not weaponless, however.  She may not be the greatest mover on tour, but with her lanky build, she still manages to get her racquet on a lot of balls.  In addition to that, she also hits flatter than the Russian, which means her shots will move through the court quicker.  As someone once ranked No. 24 in doubles, Garcia is not too shabby in the forecourt either, so she should be able to occasionally take the net away from her higher-ranked opponent.

This is a duel that has all of the necessary ingredients to be a match of extraordinary shot-making.  With their erratic histories, however, it could also turn ugly.  In the end, it may simply come down to who is best able to keep the ball in court the longest.  But with any luck, these two will bring their best to the table and produce one of the more scintillating displays of early-round play at this year’s Australian Open.