Australian Open 2014 Tennis Schedule, TV, Live Stream Info for Day 2: Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Maria Sharapova in Action
The world's No.1 tennis player, Rafael Nadal, No.6 Roger Federer, and women's tennis superstar Maria Sharapova will open their respective campaigns in Day 2 of the 2014 Australian Open in Melbourne, Australia.
Rafael Nadal (1) vs Bernard Tomic
Nadal, the top-seeded player in the tournament, will kick off his grand slam bid against local bet Bernard Tomic at the Rod Laver Arena starting 7 p.m. AEDT / 3 a.m. EST, Tuesday.
The 13-time grand slam champion will be heavily favored heading into the match, which will be his first appearance in the tournament since 2012 after missing last year's tournament due to an ailing knee.
However, Tomic is expected to get a huge boost from the hometown crowd, who are hoping that the 21-year-old Aussie will pull off a gigantic upset against Nadal.
Tomic, who recently lost to Juan Martin Del Potro in the finals of the Sydney International, advanced to the second round in each of his first five appearances in the tournament. In 2011, Nadal scored a 2-6, 5-7, 3-6 win over Tomic in the third round of the tournament.
Maria Sharapova (3) vs Bethanie Mattek-Sands
After the highly-anticipated first-round showdown between Nadal and Tomic, Maria Sharapova will make her much-awaited debut in this year's Aussie Open.
Sharapova, who just made her return from a long layoff due to a shoulder injury, will go up against Bethanie Mattek-Sands of the United States.
The 26-year-old Russian, who is seeded third in this year's tournament, will head into the match oozing with confidence due to her 5-0 record against Mattek-Sands. In their previous meeting in Birmingham in 2010, Sharapova ran away with a 6-0, 6-3 victory.
Roger Federer (6) vs James Duckworth
Meanwhile, Federer, the former world No.1, will look to open his campaign on a high note as he goes up against Australian James Duckworth.
Federer, who is looking to win his first major title in 18 months, will start his bid for his 18th grand slam title in the second match of the morning session at the Rod Laver Arena that is scheduled to start at 11 a.m. AEDT / 7 p.m. EST, featuring the match between Victoria Azarenka (2) and Johanna Larsson.
TV Schedule and Live Stream
Complete Day 2 schedule is available at the official Australian Open 2014 website. Tennis fans around the world can catch the action on ESPN3 starting 7 p.m. EST. Live online stream will also be available on AO TV Live and ESPN Watch.