The Australian Open is an annual tennis tournament played in the last two weeks of January. The sports tournament is the first of the 4 Grand Slam tennis tournaments that precede the French Open, Wimbledon, and the American Open every year.
It includes men's and women's singles; men's tournaments, women's, and mixed doubles, wheelchair championships, and friendly exhibitions. It has been played on grassy courts since 1988, but since that time there have been three different forms of hardcourt: the green-colored Rebound Ace until 2007, the blue Plexicushion until 2019, and the blue GreenSet since 2020.
The tournament was initially founded as the Australasian Championships, then in 1927, it was changed to the Australian Championships. The name Australian Open has officially been in use ever since 1969. Held for the first time in 1905, it has since become one of the largest athletics competitions in the southern hemisphere.
Australian Open 2021: Schedule
The Australian Open will take place in Melbourne from February 8 to February 21, 2021. The tournament organizers expect to work in the two-week tournament at 50 to 75% of their usual capacity.
Melbourne Park hosts the Australian Open every year. The biggest courtyard used is the Rod Laver Arena which hosts all the finals and most of the top seeds.
Margaret Court Arena also hosts some of the biggest games in the first grand slam of the year right next door, while Melbourne Arena is typically the roughest court in Melbourne Park, available to anybody with a ground ticket. Take a look at the Australian Open 2021 Schedule:
Men’s and women’s singles first round (February 8)
Men’s and women’s singles first round (February 9)
Men’s and women’s singles second round (February 10)
Men’s and women’s singles second round (February 11)
Men’s and women’s singles third round (February 12)
Men’s and women’s singles third round (February 13)
Men’s and women’s singles fourth round (February 14)
Men’s and women’s singles fourth round (February 15)
Men’s and women’s singles quarter-finals (February 16)
Men’s and women’s singles quarter-finals (February 17)
Women’s semi-finals and first men’s semi-final (February 18)
Second men’s semi-final (February 19)
Women’s final (February 20)
Men’s final (February 21)
Australian Open 2021: Dates
Originally scheduled for January 18, the Australian Open 2021 will commence on 8 February. The original idea was rejected to encourage players to quarantine from outside the world.
The ATP announced that from 10 to 13 January they would host the Grand Slam qualifying in Doha, Qatar and players will then be traveling to Australia and staying alone until the end of the month.
Australian Open 2021: Tickets
The Australian Open was required to adjust the way tickets and visits operated in 2021 significantly. Fans will not be able to walk around the grounds for the first time ever. Rather, Melbourne Park would have three separate sections, with tickets enabling only one region to be accessed. You will be not able to travel from zone to zone, each zone will have its own entry and exit points.
Area one allows you access to Rod Laver Arena, Grand Slam Oval, and a night-time food/drink area. Tickets are 62 dollars a day and 65 dollars per night. Zone Two tickets take you to Margaret Court Arena, to court outside the city of the district, and Garden Square, where you can watch the match on a large screen. Tickets for sessions during the daytime costs $56 and for sessions at night $60.
Zone Three provides access to John Cain Arena and out of the courts, practice grounds, and small portions of the Grand Slam Oval, formerly Melbourne Arena and Hisense Arena, Rod Laver, and John Cain Arenas. Weekday tickets cost $49 and the ones for the weekends cost $59.
Australian Open 2021: Draw
Whilst the launch of the Australian Open is in the midst of a new COVID fear in Melbourne, it was just Friday that the most critical draw was postponed. Up to 600 players and officials are being thrown into chaos after a hotel worker has tested positive for coronavirus. Test findings await.
Craig Tiley, the tournaments' boss, has announced that the slam will go on but the draw will not be contested on Thursday, instead of on Friday evening. Each individual player, both female and male, will then learn their opponents and potentially take their first round to the finish.
Because of his ranking, Nick Kyrgios has been unseeded and will thus land in the draw somewhere else, including in round 1 against Novak Djokovic or Rafael Nadal. Other unseeded players are Coco Gauff, Jannik Sinner, and Kevin Anderson will want to stop big guns early. Australia Ash Barty is the No. 1 seed among women despite being the only male in its home nation in No.21 much of 2020.
How To Watch Australian Open 2021 in the U.S.
The 2021 Australian Open, to be played from February 8 to February 21, at Melbourne Park in Sidney, Australia, will be broadcasted on Tennis Channel, ESPN, ESPN.com, ESPN App in the United States.
