Remember the hilarity of Nalby being ranked ridiculously high in the betting odds to win AO? There might have been something to that.

Alright, fine. I’m fanboying. Way to burst my bubble. But in all seriousness, Nalby has looked solid in his first two matches in Auckland. He was seriously going for his shots today against Pesky Petz, and I’d say about 90% of the time he was draining those tough shots. Backhand and forehand. Physically, he looks really fit and is moving well. He’s taking the ball early and is definitely interested in controlling play as fast as possible.

This doesn’t turn the Australian Open on it’s head, but considering we’re going to enter with “Rafa slam” and “defending champ” on our minds with “those Muzz, Nole and Sod guys”, Nalby is looking like a serious threat to screw up some brackets, especially if he can take care of lesser opponents in early rounds and not burn out too badly. Vamos Headbandian. No pressure.