The first Grand Slam of the new year brings a handful of intriguing first-round matches. Most of the top male players have favorable early draws, though the heat Down Under could prove challenging.

The top women's seeds figure to advance, but there are a few tricky opponents who have fared well leading up to this event.

Here is a look at some of the first-round matches to watch at the Australian Open:

Men
Marat Safin (3), Russia, vs. Raemon Sluiter, Netherlands
Normally this would not make the list, but given Safin's shoulder injury, this could become a test. Sluiter occasionally comes up with a surprising performance. If Safin's serve isn't up to par, this could be competitive.

Jiri Novak (7), Czech Republic, vs. Vince Spadea, United States
Novak made the semifinals of the Australian Open a year ago and his rise through the men's rankings over the past few years has been impressive (he was 53 in the world at the end of 2000). Spadea, from Boca Raton, Fla., did not play at the Australian Open last year. He's capable of keeping this interesting for a while.

Gaston Gaudio (17), Argentina, vs. Thomas Enqvist, Sweden
The two prior meetings between these gentlemen were both on clay. Enqvist struggled in a straight-set loss in the warm-up event at Sydney. Does the Swede have something left in the tank?

Xavier Malisse (20), Belgium, vs. Dominik Hrbaty, Slovakia
Malisse, the former boyfriend of Jennifer Capriati, doesn't have an easy task. Hrbaty played well at the warm-up event in New Zealand, the Heineken Open. He also made the quarterfinals of the Australian Open in 2001.

Mikhail Youzhny (25), Russia, vs. Richard Gasquet, France
When last we saw the Russian, he was the hero of the Davis Cup win over France, rallying from a two-set deficit in the deciding singles match. Isn't it ironic that he drew the future of French tennis, the 17-year old Gasquet? Youzhny's confidence could be questionable after being routed by Juan Carlos Ferrero in the Sydney warm-up (6-3, 6-2).

Tommy Robredo (26), Spain, vs. Wayne Ferreira, South Africa
Another battle of youth vs. experience. Ferreira wants to turn back the clock; he made the semifinals at the Australian Open back in 1992.

This is also a revenge match as Ferreira knocked Robredo out of the U.S. Open in the third round last year. Robredo has something to prove after losing 6-2, 6-2 in the first round of the Sydney tournament to Andy Roddick.

Gustavo Kuerten (30), Brazil, vs. Hicham Arazi, Morocco
This has not been Kuerten's favorite Slam; he has never gone past the second round at the Australian Open. The good news is he's 4-1 lifetime against Arazi; the bad news is he won in straight sets just once in those five matches.

Women
Serena Williams (1), United States, vs. Emilie Loit, France
OK, most people want to see what Serena is wearing! While most see her walking through another Grand Slam, she should notice Loit has won her first-round match at the Australian Open three of the past four years. Loit, who made the round of 16 at the '99 Aussie Open, has played well in the warm-up event at Canberra. No, there shouldn't be an upset here, but maybe Serena will lose a few games.

Venus Williams (2), United States, vs. Svetlana Kuznetsova, Russia
The 17-year-old Russian has a bright future as she's already ranked 44th in the world. Kuznetsova recently gained some notoriety by teaming with Martina Navratilova to win the doubles tournament at Gold Coast.

Jennifer Capriati (3), United States, vs. Marlene Weingartner, Germany
Capriati's early exit in the Australian Open warm-up has some shaking their heads. Weingartner is ranked just 98th in the world, but she has played well Down Under lately. She made the round of 16 at last year's Australian Open (upset Meghann Shaughnessy before losing to Amelie Mauresmo). Weingartner also made the quarterfinals at the Canberra warm-up.

Amanda Coetzer (19), South Africa, vs. Barbara Schett, Austria
Something has to give here in this battle of solid veterans. In her past seven appearances at the Australian Open, Coetzer has made the round of 16 or better six times. Schett has had some success there, too, going to the third round or better seven straight times.

Anna Kournikova, Russia, vs. Henrieta Nagyova, Slovakia
Kournikova lost in the first round of last year's Australian Open. This time she has a good match-up as Nagyova has lost her first-round match in this event three straight times. Now for the bad news ... the winner likely faces fifth seed Justine Henin-Hardenne.

Howie Schwab is a coordinating producer for ESPN.