We were dormant for much of December, then had two weeks of warm-up events in Australia and BAM - we're quickly here for the first Major of the season! There is considerable excitement about the year's first 'Grand Slam' (as nearly everyone is determined to call it), which was founded in 1905 when it was called the Australasian Championships. The tournament’s nickname is the “Happy Slam.”
Quick AO fun facts: Ken Rosewall is the youngest player to win the Australian Open at 18 years old in 1953, and the oldest at 35 in 1972. Meanwhile, in the women’s division, Martina Hingis is considered the youngest to win the tournament at 16 years old, and Thelma Coyne Long as the oldest at age 35 yrs and 3 mo. (Serena Williams was a month older than Thelma when she won her last AO in 2017 at age 35 and 4 mo.).
The AO has had its fair share of hiccups over its existence. Before 1977, the games were from December to January. Following the games from December 1976 to January 1977, the organisers wanted the second tournament for that year to be held in December 1977. The drawback was that not a lot of players competed. But if the tournament happened twice in 1977, it was not held at all in 1986. During the 80s, the games were held on the last week of November to the first week of December. That was the setup until 1985. After that year, the games have since been held in the middle of January, starting in 1987. And that was why there was no Australian Open in 1986.
The AO has been staged twice in New Zealand – 1906 & 1912. Djokovic holds the record for the most Men’s Singles titles with 7 wins; Margaret Court holds the record for the most Women’s Singles Titles with 11 wins; and Ash Barty is the last Australian female to win the AO.
The AO was a Grass Court Event until 1988. Out of the four Grand Slams, Melbourne Park is the only venue to have three stadium courts covered by a retractable roof. The Australian Open holds the record for the latest ever match conclusion with the Lleyton Hewitt vs Marcos Baghdatis match in 2008 concluding at 4:33am. The first AO in 1905 was played on a cricket ground which is today known as Albert Reserve Tennis Centre. And, after winning both his Australian Open Singles titles Jim Courier jumped into the Yarra River for a swim
So let's play ball!👇
Australian OpenMelbourne ParkMelbourne AustraliaJanuary 16 - 29, 2023
Surface: hard
Draw: Singles 128, Doubles 64.
The Men
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| Australian former tennis player Roy Emerson won 12 Grand Slam singles titles and 16 Grand Slam doubles titles. He is the only male player to have completed a career Grand Slam (winning titles at all four Grand Slam events) in both singles and doubles, and the first of four male players to complete a double career Grand Slam in singles (later followed by Rod Laver, Novak Djokovic, and Rafael Nadal). 12 singles majors. He held that record for 30 years until it was passed by Pete Sampras in 2000. He also held the record of six Australian Open men's singles titles until 2019 when Novak Djokovic won his seventh. Emerson won five of those titles consecutively (1963–67), a still-standing record. |
Defending champion: Rafael Nadal defeated Daniil Medvedev.
Most titles: Novak Djokovic with nine. Of course the big news is that Novak, after being barred from last year’s tourney, will be taking part this year and is considered a heavy favourite.
The other big news was the withdrawal of the No.1 player, Carlos Alcaraz, because of injury. Although Alcaraz could possibly retain his ranking, there likely will be a new No.1 with Novak Djokovic, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Casper Ruud in the running for the top spot.
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| Melbourne Fed Square |
Top 20 seeds (in order of seeding): Rafael Nadal, Casper Ruud, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Novak Djokovic, Andrey Rublev, Felix Auger-Aliassime, Daniil Medvedev, Taylor Fritz, Holger Rune, Hubert Hurkacz, Cameron Norrie, Alexander Zverev, Matteo Berrettini, Pablo Carreno Busta, Jannik Sinner, Frances Tiafoe, Lorenzo Musetti, Karen Khachanov, Nick Kyrgios, Denis Shapovalov
Wildcards: Aussies Rinky Hiji Kata, Jason Kubler, John Millman, Alexei Popyrin, plus Christopher Eubanks, Dominic Thiem, Luca Van Assche, Wu Yibing
Protected ranking: Jeremy Chardy, Hugo Dellien, Kyle Edmund, Lloyd Harris, Guido Pella, Stan Wawrinka
Withdrawals: Carlos Alcaraz, Marin Cilic, Gael Monfils, Kamil Majchrzak, Reilly Opelka
Interesting first-round matches include:
Andrey Rublev vs Dominic Thiem
Rafael Nadal vs Jack Draper
The Women
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| Former Australian player Ash Barty - one of the most versatile all-court players of the tour and who, while the #1 player in the world, won her 3rd GS at the AO in 2022 then retired at the top of her game at age 25. One of most likeable and favorite players of all time, Ash is sorely missed😔 |
2022 Champion: Ashleigh Barty (retired) defeated Danielle Collins.
Most titles: In the Open Era, Serena Williams with seven. Among active players Victoria Azarenka and Naomi Osaka have each won the title twice.
Top 20 seeds (in order of seeding): Iga Swiatek, Ons Jabeur, Jessica Pegula, Caroline Garcia, Aryna Sabalenka, Maria Sakkari, Coco Gauff, Daria Kasatkina, Veronika Kudermetova, Madison Keys, Belinda Bencic, Danielle Collins, Beatriz Haddad Maia, Petra Kvitova, Anett Kontaveit, Jelena Ostapenko, Liudmila Samsonova, Ekaterina Alexandrova, Barbora Krejcikova, Martina Trevisan
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| Princess Bridge |
Wildcards: Aussie players Kimberley Birrell, Jaimee Fourlis, Olivia Gadecki, Talia Gibson, Storm Hunter, plus Diane Perry, Taylor Townsend, Moyuka Uchijima
Protected ranking: Jacqueline Cristian, Sofia Kenin, Kristina Kucova, Karolina Muchova, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Nadia Podoroska, Evgeniya Rodina, Zheng Saisai, Laura Siegemund, Patricia Maria Tig, Marketa Vondrousova
Withdrawals: Simona Halep, Daria Saville, Wang Qiang, Naomi Osaka, Ajla Tomljanovic, Paula Badosa
Interesting first-round matches include:
Iga Świątek vs Jule Niemeier
Coco Gauff vs Katerina Siniakova
Victoria Azarenka vs Sofia Kenin (both previous AO champs)
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| Melbourne Royal Botanical Garden |
Thanks partner, Shirley Hartt💏
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