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Australian Open

Australian Open…

Australian Open is first of the four Grand Slams that take place each year. It is
followed by the French Open, the Wimbledon and the U.S.Open. The venue for
Australian Open is Melbourne, Australia. Earlier it was held in the month of December, but
now it takes place in last two weeks of the month of January.

 

Just like the other three Grand Slams, Australian Open also has five major events of Men’s Singles, Men’s Doubles, Women’s Singles, Women’s Doubles and Mixed Doubles. Other events like Junior’s and Master’s Tournaments are also held during this period.

 

A Brief Past…

Australian Open Tournament started in 1905 as the Australasian Championships, which was later named as Australian Championships, and was participated by all top-ranked amateur players of the world. It was named Australian Open in 1969.

The first Championships were held in six different cities of Australia – Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide, Brisbane, Perth and New Zealand. In 1972 it was decided that instead of being played at all the cities it should be played on the grass courts of Kooyong in South-east Melbourne. Later in 1980, the venue of the tournament was shifted to Melbourne Park, next to the Melbourne Cricket Ground, with a hard court.

The Australian Open…

Australian Open is held in the middle of summer in Australia, for two weeks in the month of January. It is played in Melbourne at two courts namely, Vodafone Arena and Rod Laver Arena. These courts have a movable roof that can be closed during rains or extreme hot conditions. Australian Open is sponsored by Kia Motor Company.

Now, winning a slam means winning all the four Grand Slam titles including Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and U.S.Open. The Last player to win a Grand Slam was Australian player Rod Laver who won all the four titles in 1969. In women’s Steffi Graf was the last woman to have won Grand Slam in 1988. The same year she also won the Olympic Gold to make it a Golden Slam.

Blasts from the Past…

Men’s record holders for most wins:
All competitions: Adrian Quist (Australia), 13.
Singles: Roy Emerson (Australia), 6.
Consecutive singles titles: Roy Emerson (Australia), 5 (1963-1967).
Doubles: Adrian Quist (Australia), 10.

Women’s record holders for most wins:
All competitions: Adrian Quist (Australia), 13.
Singles: Roy Emerson (Australia), 6.
Consecutive singles titles: Roy Emerson (Australia), 5 (1963-1967).
Doubles: Adrian Quist (Australia), 10.