Soderling and 2010 finalist Murray were placed in the top half of the draw yesterday as Nadal chases his fourth consecutive Grand Slam after stringing together wins at the French Open, Wimbledon and US Open last year.
The powerful Spaniard would become the first man since Australian Rod Laver in 1969 to hold all four Grand Slam titles at once if he can win the Australian Open, which starts on Monday.
Nadal said while he was constantly reminded of that possibility, he did not feel the weight of history.
