When Australian Open organisers revealed last month that players could practise only with one designated person during the first week of the upcoming 14-day quarantine period in Melbourne, a frantic exchange of messages took place. There was no time to wait for those who wished to secure the best hitting partners before the first grand-slam tournament of 2021. Some interesting duos have emerged as a result. Rafael Nadal lined up Jannik Sinner, in what comes across as a significant stamp of approval from the 20-times grand-slam champion of the 19-year-old Italian’s talent; the defending champion Sofia Kenin arranged what is likely to be a series of intense sessions with Jelena Ostapenko; and Andy Murray decided to keep it British by putting his name down alongside

Source: The Times January 08, 2021 09:00 UTC