In every run-up to a Grand Slam, first we get the storm, then we get the calm. For years, top players have avoided committing to a tournament the week before a major. More recently, others have been following their precautionary lead by pulling out of tune-up events at the slightest hint of injury or illness. Already in 2014, the exodus has turned into an epidemic. So far, these players have carried themselves to the sidelines: Sloane Stephens, John Isner, Laura Robson, Jerzy Janowicz, Caroline Wozniacki, Richard Gasquet, Sabine Lisicki, Janko Tipsarevic, Tommy Robredo, Nicolas Almagro, Vasek Pospisil, and Mikhail Youzhny.
Possibly, as I typed those words, three or four more players announced their withdrawals, but that’s the list I have right now. I’m guessing that most of them—with the definite exception of Tipsarevic and his bad heel—will be healthy enough for the Australian Open and its record prize-money haul. But this weeks’ warm-ups, in Sydney, Auckland, and Hobart, are a little on the thin side. Here’s a quick look at the draws, and what last-minute lessons we might learn before next Monday, when the Aussie Open officially begins.