All the world’s top 50 men and women players, bar Victoria Azarenka, have confirmed they will start the Australian Open, the first Grand Slam of the season, at Melbourne Park in January, organisers said on Saturday.

Top-ranked Rafael Nadal and Ashleigh Barty lead the field at the 115th edition of the tournament from January 20-February 7, which will mark the return to action of former world number three Juan Martin del Potro.

The Argentinian has a protected ranking of 22 as he makes a comeback from a six-month injury break.

Seven-time winner Serena Williams will play as she targets an elusive 24th Grand Slam title to match the all-time haul of Margaret Court.

The controversial Australian, who has upset some players with her views on homosexuality and gay marriage, will be honoured during the tournament to mark the 50th anniversary of her calendar-year Grand Slam.

Williams’ 39-year-old sister Venus will also be back for another year.

Missing among the top 50 is two-time champion Azarenka, who withdrew prior to the entry deadline Saturday for unspecified reasons.

“We are delighted to welcome this extremely strong player field to Melbourne in what promises to be a once in a generation event,” said tournament director Craig Tiley.

Over the past decade, with the exception of Swiss Stan Wawrinka in 2014, the men’s event has been dominated by Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer, while Nadal won his first and only crown in 2009.

Djokovic is the defending champion and is gunning for an eighth title while Federer, at age 38, is looking for his seventh.

The women’s event has been far more open with seven different champions in the past 10 years, including Japan’s Naomi Osaka in 2019.

Former winner Caroline Wozniacki recently announced that the tournament would be her last before retiring.

Meanwhile, Daniil Medvedev was crowned Diriyah Tennis Cup 2019 champion after the Russian star defeated Italian Fabio Fognini in the final in straight sets 6-2, 6-2, in a match that lasted just over an hour.

The Russian clearly established his superiority over his rival from start to finish, showing again that in 2019 he is a candidate to be able to fight for the most important titles on the ATP circuit. His next test will be the Mubadala World Tennis Championship 2019, where he will debut on Thursday against South Korean Hyeon Chung.

Elsewhere, former French Open champion Francesca Schiavone said on Friday she had defeated cancer, defiantly telling fans: “I’m still breathing”.

The 39-year-old, who became the first Italian woman to win a Grand Slam title with victory at Roland Garros in 2010, revealed her diagnosis in a short video on her Instagram account.

“Hi everyone, upon 7-8 months of silence from social media and from the world, I wish to share with you what happened to me,” said Schiavone who appeared in the video with her dark hair closely cropped.

“A cancer had been diagnosed to me. I did chemotherapy, I fought a tough battle and now I am still breathing. I have won this fight. And now I am back in action.”

Schiavone retired from tennis after the 2018 US Open having won eight career titles and playing in three Fed Cup winning teams with Italy in 2006, 2009 and 2010.

Her greatest moment came when she defeated Australia’s Samantha Stosur in the 2010 Roland Garros final. She went on to claim her career best world ranking of four in January 2011.

Later that year, Schiavone came agonisingly close to defending her French Open title but was defeated by China’s Li Na in the Paris final.

Schiavone’s health battle drew instant praise. “Your strength, your courage, your roar are always an inspiration,” tweeted Inter Milan, one of the Serie A football clubs based in her home city.

Agencies