Nick Kyrgios begins his Australian Open campaign on Monday night buoyed by a swell of local hopes, joining him in contention for a home grand slam.
The 2018 tournament begins on Monday with 17 Australians in the draw - led by men's No.1 Kyrgios and Ashleigh Barty in the women's field.
Should the 22-year-old's knee hold up, Kyrgios is expected to make a deep run at Melbourne Park.
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, ranked 15th, is the first seed he can meet, with world No.3 Grigor Dimitrov a projected fourth-round opponent.
Kyrgios will carry the burden of expectation, but says he has a more mature outlook to help deal with that - calling the Open "just another tournament".
"There's pressure wherever I go. I'm expected to win a lot of matches. No matter if I'm here, Wimbledon, US Open; it's the same for me," he said.
"I know even if I lose first round here, there's a long year ahead.
"I'd love to do well here but, for me, it's just another tournament."
Kyrgios will open against world No.100 Rogerio Dutra Silva on Hisense Arena, his favourite court at Melbourne Park.
"I've played a lot of matches and won a lot of matches on that court," he said.
"Obviously that match in the fourth round against (Andreas) Seppi (in 2015) when I made it to the quarter-finals, ever since then, I've kind of tried to make that memory happen again. I definitely feel comfortable on Hisense Arena."
Kyrgios - the Brisbane International champion - also saluted fine early-season performances from his compatriots.
Alex de Minaur and Barty reached the final in Sydney, where Daria Gavrilova also made it to the last four.
"Australian tennis is in pretty good hands at the moment. Got a good bunch of boys and a good bunch of girls that can make an impact on the tournament," he said.
"It's been great to see Alex do so well. He's worked so hard. He's very hungry.
"Guys are going to struggle against him. They don't know too much about him and he's feeling confident.
"Ash Barty is unbelievable ... I played juniors with her. She was dominating all the junior tournaments when I was young and we were really good friends.
"I've always thought she had a great game to be at the top of the game. She mixes the ball up well. She's got great talent.
"Dasha (Gavrilova) has been pretty good for the last couple years.
"And it's good to see Ajla (Tomjlanovic) back, especially after the shoulder surgery, coming back, playing at the highest level again."
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