MELBOURNE, Australia — As three-time defending champion Novak Djokovic held the Australian Open trophy in a photo shoot before Friday’s draw, he joked that having his fingerprints on it may in some way help him win the title for a fourth consecutive year.

The draw certainly didn’t dent Djokovic’s chances, with top-seeded Rafael Nadal, No. 4 Andy Murray, No. 5 Juan Martin del Potro and No. 6 Roger Federer all stacked in the opposite half.

Djokovic’s new coach, six-time Grand Slam champion Boris Becker, attended the draw and duly noted that Nadal, Federer and co were in “a loaded half, that’s for sure.”

Djokovic, who is on a 24-match winning streak, opens against No. 90-ranked Lukas Lacko and potentially has a quarterfinal against Stanislas Wawrinka, who took him to 12-10 in the fifth set at the Australian Open last year.

The bottom half of the draw also contains No. 3 David Ferrer, who lost in a semifinal upset at Auckland on Friday, and No. 7 Tomas Berdych.

Djokovic conceded it was an advantage to avoid the other tournament favorites early but said: “Regardless of the draw, the potential opponents that I have in later rounds, I need to direct my attention to my next opponent. There are plenty of players who are able to win the Australian Open this year or any other Grand Slam title.”

On the women’s side, top-ranked Serena Williams opens against Australian teenager Ashleigh Barty and has 2011 U.S. Open champion Sam Stosur and two-time finalist Li Na in her half.