The imposing figure of triple grand slam champion Stan Wawrinka is likely to stand between Nick Kyrgios and another Australian Open quarter-final appearance.
Kyrgios will launch his Open campaign against Portugal's world No.81 Gastao Elias and has a golden opportunity to ease his way into the tournament after being troubled by a knee injury in the lead-up.
The 14th seed will play either Andreas Seppi or fellow tour veteran Paul-Henri Mathieu should his body pass its first real test since Monday night's Fast4 exhibition win over Rafael Nadal.
Kyrgios could face countryman Sam Groth in the third round before Wawrinka - the reigning US Open champion and only man in the past seven years to conquer Novak Djokovic at Melbourne Park - is likely to be lying in wait in the round of 16.
Kyrgios has already beaten Wawrinka twice - after infamously sledging the Swiss in Montreal in 2015 and winning again last year on clay in Madrid.
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But the 21-year-old this week said he'd never relied on wins over the sport's big guns to believe he could challenge for grand slam glory.
"I always know every day's a new day and I know what I can bring on a day is enough to beat anyone," said Kyrgios, a quarter-finalist in Melbourne two years ago.
Apart from ending Djokovic's three-year Open reign en route to the title in the 2014 quarter-finals, Wawrinka also upended the Serb in last year's US Open title match and looms as a significant road block for Kyrgios.
The fourth seed opens his bid for a second trophy in Melbourne against Slovakian Martin Klizan and looks to have a relatively routine passage through to the last 16.
Should their projected fourth-round blockbuster materialise, Kyrgios or Wawrinka are seeded to strike seventh seed Marin Cilic in the quarter-finals and world No.1 Andy Murray in the semis after landing on the opposite side of the draw to six-times champion Novak Djokovic.
In a much tougher draw, Bernard Tomic - Australia's only other men's seed - opens his campaign against Brazilian baseliner Thomaz Bellucci and has Cilic, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Jack Sock lurking in his section.
Australian Open wildcard playoff winner Omar Jasika has drawn Spanish 21st seed David Ferrer, while Christopher O'Connell's grand slam debut will be against in-form 15th seed Grigor Dimitrov.
Exciting Australian teenage wildcard Alex De Minaur has an inviting opener against Austria's world No.84 Gerald Melzer.
Murray opens against Ilya Marchenko, the Ukraine who ousted Kyrgios from last year's US Open.
Djokovic plays Fernando Verdasco, the Spanish former semi-finalist who held five match points against him in Doha last week and who upset Rafael Nadal in the first round last year.
Seeded 17th in his first major since Wimbledon last year, four-time champion Roger Federer faces a qualifier first up.
NICK KYRGIOS'S POTENTIAL PATH TO AUSTRALIAN OPEN GLORY
1ST RD: v Gastao Elias (POR)
2ND RD: v Andreas Seppi (ITA)
3RD RD: 22-Pablo Cuevas (URU)
4TH RD: 4-Stan Wawrinka (SUI)
QF: 7-Marin Cilic (CRO)
SF: 1-Andy Murray (GBR)
2-Novak Djokovic (SRB)
