This year’s Australian Open will see if Switzerland’s Roger Federer can recover from a hard 2008. He lost to eventual champion Novak Djokovic of Serbia in the semifinals of the Aussie Open, was crushed by archrival Rafael Nadal of Spain in the finals at the French Open and lost an epic five setter to Nadal at Wimbledon ending a five-year reign.

Federer did manage to salvage the season by winning his fifth straight U.S. Open, for his 13th Grand Slam title, but ended up losing his stranglehold on the No. 1 ranking in the world to Nadal, finishing the year at No. 2.

That would be one of the best years ever for anyone ranked below him, but this is Roger Federer we’re talking about. He is just one major short of tying Pete Sampras for the most ever.

As the tournament begins Jan. 19 in Melbourne, things have changed since Federer last won the tournament.

For starters he’s not the favorite. That may be defending champion Djokovic or Nadal, or Andy Murray or Andy Roddick or James Blake – take your pick. All are ranked in the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) Top 10 and all are capable of winning the first Grand Slam tournament of the season.

The only player missing in the mix is fifth ranked Nikolay Davydenko of Russia. Davydenko had to pull out of the tournament because of a nagging heel injury that has bothered him since last season.

Nadal would like nothing more than to win his first Australian Open on the hard court surface and prove to the world that he’s not just a clay court specialist. The four-time French Open champion sort of proved that last year by winning his first Wimbledon title, but went on to lose in the semifinals of the U.S. Open a few months later.

Roddick and Blake are the only two Americans ranked and seeded in the Top 10, and neither has ever won the tournament, but that doesn’t mean they can’t this year. Roddick, ranked eighth in the world, has yet another new coach in former pro Larry Stefanki after a couple of years with Jimmy Connors.

Blake, seeded 10th is in search of his first Grand Slam title and has played well on the hard courts. He ended last season reaching the semifinals of the ATP Masters Series in Paris.

Djokovic has been playing some of his best tennis on the hard courts in the past year and could repeat. But if the ranking gods are correct, look for Federer and Nadal in another epic showdown in the finals.