How and where one of the four Grand Slam tournaments takes place

Welcoming Melbourne

The Australian Open-2022 tournament will be held in the last two weeks of January. These competitions were held for the first time in 1905, only then it was named the “Australasia Championship”. In 1905, only 17 athletes took part in it; now, the number of participants grew to 128. The Melbourne Park Court is the main venue for competitions. About 4.5 million people live in Melbourne. Forecasters said that the air temperature and the weather conditions, in general, will be comfortable for participants and spectators.

Preliminary tennis betting forecasts have been created for the fans. According to the experts, it is worth paying attention to Russian Daniil Medvedev and Serbian Novak Djokovic in men’s singles. Among women, the favourites are Ashleigh Barty and Japanese Naomi Osaka. However, no tournament goes without unexpected turns and competitions, so everything depends on the level of preparation and the mindset of the tennis players.

The organisers stated that a vaccination certificate is required to enter the country so that the participants and spectators feel safe at the event. Also, all visitors of the Australian Open-2022 must wear a face mask. The organisers promise that following these requirements will give all the participants a lot of “perks” during this championship. Firstly, any ticket to a tennis match will provide visitors with the right to visit all the city sights absolutely free of charge. Secondly, the founding parties created special premium packages that include tennis matches, hotel accommodation and meals. Such travel packages make the process of housing arrangements easier and guarantee that you will not be left out on the street. This is because there may simply be not enough rooms in the hotel during the time of the championship. Therefore, it is worth taking care of it and booking a place to stay in advance.

As usual, men’s games consist of 5 sets, women’s games consist of 3 sets. If each player has three wins during the match, there are special Super Tie-breaks which are played up to 10 victory points. Each game ends with eliminating one of the players from the tournament, which is the same way the Olympics are held.

It is not a secret that tennis is one of the most expensive sports, both for the organisers and the participants themselves. The founders of the Australian Open-2022 stated the total prize fund value – 54 million dollars. This is absolutely normal for tournaments of such a high level. The winners of the singles matches will receive 3,168 million dollars, the doubles winners will get 576 thousand dollars per team, and in the round of the mixed doubles, the winners will receive 136.8 thousand dollars. By the way, even for winning single matches of the first level, participants receive 64 thousand dollars. This is why every tennis player does everything they can to get into the prestigious top-level championships.

If for any reason, you are unable to attend the championship in person, the following information is for you. There will be online broadcasts will be shown live on websites such as Eurosport and on the official website of the tournament.

The Australian Open-2022 is not aimed just at the adults. The organisers have thought about children of different ages as well. Recreation spaces and entertainment include three playgrounds with an area of 5,000 square metres. This includes the Emirates stadium, which children much love – it is full of amusements, adventures and stage performances. The ANZ Tennis Hot Shots area is bigger than ever, so head to the interactive space for family recreation as soon as you feel tired.

Adults can visit the beach house and the Garden Square, where you can watch matches on the big screen together with emotionally-charged fans from across the world. There are many shops, restaurants, exhibitions, parks and other exciting places to take photos and rest nearby.

Who should I support?

The following male tennis players were selected from the Russian athletes: Andrey Rublev, Daniil Medvedev, Karen Khachanov and Aslan Karatsev. Among the female players: Daria Kasatkina, Varvara Gracheva, Anastasia Potapova, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Ekaterina Alexandrova, Vera Zvonareva, Veronika Kudermetova and Ludmilla Samsonova. Recently the draw for the Australian Open-2022 took place. Now the players know their rivals in the championship. Let’s have a look at the Russian male team.

Daniil Medvedev’s opponent is Henri Laaksonen from Switzerland. Andrey Rublev will play with an Italian Gianluca Mager. Aslan Karatsev will face Jaume Munar from Spain. And Karen Khachanov will play against Denis Kudla from the USA.

The female part of the team is also prepared to fight for victory. Due to the draw results, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova’s opponent is Hungarian Anna Bondar. Varvara Gracheva will meet with an Italian Lucia Bronzetti. Anastasia Potapova is to compete with Kamila Georgi. Ekaterina Alexandrova with Bernarda Pera from the USA. Veronika Kudermetova – with Claire Liu. Vera Zvonareva will play with the Belgian Elise Mertens. Daria Kasatkina will face Stefanie Vogele from the news in the fall. And Lyudmila Samsonova will compete with Emina Bektas from the USA.

According to experienced professionals and coaches, some players got incredibly lucky, and it will help them to remain in the contest and reach the next stage more easily. In contrast, some of the tennis players will have to try very hard to win.

It started with a scandal

The famous Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic was issued with a medical document that made him exempt from vaccination. As mentioned above, a vaccination certificate is required to enter the country, so the representatives of the Serbian Tennis Federation and the local Australian authorities spoke about this exemption certificate in advance. However, it was not enough for law enforcement agencies. Djokovic was detained and isolated in a hotel for illegal immigrants upon arrival.

Thanks to the help of his lawyers, the athlete was initially allowed to participate in the Australian Open tournament. A little later, it turned out that the reason for the exemption from vaccination was a positive PCR test taken in December. In December, a French magazine invited the tennis player to an interview and photoshoot and Djokovic’s he did not refuse, knowing about his disease. This is why many believe that this test was falsified and the exemption document itself is a way to avoid the vaccination. As a result, the player was deported from Australia, and he will not take part in the championship. Italian Salvatore Caruso will perform instead.

Generally, despite the COVID-19 prevention measures and the scandals, the tournament is a high-level event, and it is going accordingly. There will still be many surprises and exceptional moments for fans and participants. After all, each participant went through a stringent selection process and worked for a year to achieve this result. Unfortunately, many athletes have not managed to achieve the right to participate in this tournament in their entire sports career.