Hot In Hurr'

102 degree whether not withstanding, it has been a blazing-hot Aussie Open two rounds in! The race for the second week has reached a fever pitch and there are some blockbuster matches for us all to drool over.

So what happened through two rounds down under? Well, for those of you too lazy to bother watching, there's been a lot of this:

...major hubbub about this:

...too much of this, and EVERYONE is talking about this:

And I didn't even mention Tomic's cheekiness or Jerzy Janowicz's craziness.

Now it's time to look forward to the third round where there are a handful of intriguing matchups to grab our attention, but none bigger than MaSha vs. Venus. Venus is playing really well and is 2-0 vs. Maria on the GS stage, but Ms. Sugarpova has been beating the daylights out of her opponents so far (see bagel picture above). Venus, however, is a veteran who moves well and hits almost as hard as MaSha, so I do not expecting anything remotely close to a bagel. Still, MaSha's heavy hitting game is a little more consistent so I pick her to win in three tight sets.

Another interesting match up is our new favorite hot-head Jerzy Janowicz against Nico Almagro. They both have big serves, Almagro has the beautiful one-handed backhand, and Janowicz has the huge forehand that can cause damage. What impressed me about JJ was his ability to comeback from two sets down in his now infamous match against Devvarman and I worry about Nico's concentration in long battles. I have Janowicz in 5.

Lastly, our two favorite English-speaking youngsters on the WTA face up. Laura Robson, pseudo-hometown favorite in Melbourne, is just coming off an 11-9 third-set triumph against 8th seeded Petra Kvitova. The bubbly Sloane Stephens had two fairly routine wins in the early rounds against unseeded opponents. There is much at stake for both of these women as the winner of this match would be the favorite in the Round of 16 to get to the quarterfinals. Their most recent meeting was a straight-set victory by Stephens, so I will have to take her in three sets. Still, I may be a bit of a homer for picking her (USA! USA!).

Anyone disagree with my analyses? Any other matches to keep our eye on as we head towards the weekend? Leave a comment and discuss! And remember to hydrate, wear sunscreen, and keep your wide-brimmed hats close.