Five to watch out for

Marcos Baghdatis will be sure of popular support from his large army of fans and they will all be hoping he can recreate his 2006 form when he reached the Australian Open final.

The Cypriot will be sure of popular support from his large army of fans and they will all be hoping he can recreate his 2006 form when he reached the Australian Open final. Back problems have hurt his progress but his impressive groundstrokes mean if he brings his A game he can recapture his vintage best.

Like Baghdatis the unseeded Croatian, who was once as high as No 7 in the rankings, has had injury problems, but the big-server can give his opponents problems. If his powerful serve clicks then he will be tough to stop, and with a favourable draw should be still around in the second week of the tournament.

The talented Latvian gave a statement of intent for the year ahead when he beat Novak Djokovic in Brisbane earlier this month. What Gulbis lacks is consistency, but he is a dangerous unranked player in the draw and is capable of springing a surprise or two and ought to at least make the third round.

The 19th seed from Croatia has been on the fringes of the top 15 for a while now and his tournament triumph in Chennai will mean he comes to Melbourne with a lot of confidence. If he can maintain his good serving from Chennai then he will expect to have a good run.

The man from Chile has never been beyond the second round in Australia, but he is an unpredictable part of the draw where No 12 seed Gael Monfils is the highest placed seed. The 2004 Olympics gold medallist will fancy his chances against the inconsistent Monfils if he can navigate the opening two rounds. [e-mail]