The first grand slam of the 2025 season is upon us, with the Australian Open getting under way on Sunday.

World number one Aryna Sabalenka is aiming to write her name into the history books with a third consecutive win in Melbourne and is looking to carry on her momentum after also triumphing at the US Open last year.

However, she faces stiff competition. Iga Swiatek will be aiming to win her first title at Melbourne Park as she starts her bid to go back to the top of the rankings.

Coco Gauff, meanwhile, will be looking to improve on her semi-final finish in 2023 after missing last year's tournament.

Will one of the favourites triumph, or will there be a surprise victor? With the help of Opta data, we look at some of the key storylines ahead of the tournament.

History beckons

Only Margaret Court, Evonne Goolagong, Steffi Graff, Monica Seles, and Martina Hingis have ever won the Australian Open three times in a row, with Sabalenka hoping to join that illustrious group.

The Belarusian won four titles in 2024 to help clinch the year-end number-one spot, with all of those triumphs coming on hard court.

In fact, since the start of the 2020 season, she has claimed 44 wins on that surface, more than any other active player in that time (Swiatek second with 35), showing her dominance on the hard court.

Last year, Sabalenka won the Australian Open without dropping a single set. She has the best win percentage of any current player at the tournament (81.5%) and has only lost five matches in Melbourne.

In grand slams, she has proven a force to be reckoned with. Despite missing Wimbledon, she registered 18 wins at majors in 2024, more than any other player, with her 94.7% win rate also the best since Serena Williams in 2015 (96.2% - minimum 10 matches).

Having already won her first title in 2025 at the Brisbane International, Sabalenka will begin her title defence against 2017 US Open winner Sloane Stephens.

The 26-year-old has not lost any of her previous four meetings with the American, and if she can make that five wins in a row, she will become the first player to record 15 consecutive victories in main draw matches at Melbourne Park since Victoria Azarenka, who won 18 between 2012 and 2014.

The only time the defending champion lost her opening match in the subsequent edition of the Australian Open was Jennifer Capriati back in 2003.

Swiatek and Gauff ready to pounce

Swiatek and Gauff will be determined to give Sabalenka stiff competition in Australia as they both look to earn their first titles at the event.

The Pole triumphed at the French Open for the fourth time last year, and while she may be known for her clay-court prowess, Swiatek can still hold her own on the hard court.

She has suffered just 11 defeats at grand slams on the surface, the same as Sabalenka, and holds a 77.1% win rate, the third-best among current players.

Despite losing the number-one ranking to Sabalenka last year, Swiatek, who will open against Katerina Siniakova, was still one of the top performers on the WTA tour, as she, along with the Belarusian, claimed the joint-most WTA top 10 wins of any player, winning 11.

Meanwhile, Gauff is fresh off winning the United Cup with the United States, having also finished 2024 on a high by triumphing in the WTA Finals. After beating Swiatek in the final of the former and knocking out Sabalenka in the semi-finals of the latter, she became the youngest player to win three consecutive matches against the WTA's top two since Daria Kasatkina in 2017.

Gauff has shown her worth in recent times and will be hoping to taste more success on hard court, as she has won each of her last eight consecutive singles finals on the surface.

Like Sabalenka, she will face a former major winner, Sofia Kenin, in the opening round. It is the first women's singles opening round at the tournament in the Open Era with two matches between former grand slam winners.

Can Osaka find her groove?

Naomi Osaka is a two-time winner at the Australian Open, triumphing in 2019 and 2021, but has struggled to find her rhythm since returning from maternity leave last year.

She did reach her first final since Miami in 2022 last week at the Auckland Open but was forced to retire hurt from the clash, though she remains optimistic that she can return to Melbourne.

Though she did not make it past the first round at the tournament last year, Osaka still boasts a formidable record in Melbourne. She has the second-best win rate of any active player at the Australian Open (80%, behind Sabalenka), winning 24 of her 30 matches.

During her 2019 win, Osaka set a new record, dropping 71 games on her way to the title, the most ever lost to triumph in the competition. She will be hoping for a better run this time around as she starts against Caroline Garcia for the second year running.

She will not be the only one looking to disrupt the top three though.

Olympic gold medallist, and last year's runner-up in Melbourne, Zheng Qinwen will also fancy her chances. She registered 121 aces in grand slams during 2024, the most aces of any player last season.

World number four Jasmine Paolini could also prove a dark horse once again, having reached the French Open and Wimbledon finals last year. The Italian converted 92 break points in grand slams in 2024, the most of any player - she had a break point conversion rate of 49.5%.