How baffling Open blunder hung fans out to dry as cynical reality emerges — Talking Pts

It was a quiet opening to the Australian Open, primarily thanks to a major schedule blunder. Catch up on Day 1 in our Talking Points!

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FANS HUNG OUT TO DRY IN SCHEDULE BLUNDER

The start of the Australian Open is always exciting – but this year, if you bought a ticket for day one, we wouldn’t blame you for being a bit annoyed.

Last year, the tournament moved to a three-day opening round, claiming it would help fix the scourge of super-late-night finishes.

If that was really the idea, it was a ridiculous one. The very first day of the 2024 edition saw Aryna Sabalenka walking onto centre court for her Round 1 match at 11:41pm, after Novak Djokovic’s first-round match went long. She got the job done quickly but immediately it was clear late nights weren’t going anywhere.

Realistically, there were two reasons to add a 15th day to the tournament.

One of them played out on Sunday, as the 2025 season’s first grand slam began. Rain ruined the day one schedule, causing play to be abandoned on all outside courts for over six hours, with many matches postponed.

Having Monday and Tuesday left to complete Round 1 will ensure all matches are squeezed in. This is a positive to the additional day.

But let’s be real here. Adding a day to the tournament also added a day of ticket sales. And the financial boon of a 15th day, especially having it on the weekend, had to be a big part of the decision. That’s just capitalism.

And what did fans who bought tickets to day one of the 2025 Australian Open get?

Well, they got a lot of rain. That part we can’t blame tournament organisers for – Craig Tiley doesn’t control the weather, as much as we’re sure he’d love to. So if you bought a ground pass for Sunday, it sucks that you didn’t get much tennis, but that’s just how it goes.

Fans who put forward their hard-earned for a show court ticket, though? They have a right to be aggrieved with the schedule-makers, and Foxsports.com.au heard from multiple buyers who weren’t happy once the Sunday order of play was revealed.

The day one schedule was… soft, to say the least. Reigning finalist Qinwen Zheng got a centre court spot, but was joined by Norway’s No.6 seed Casper Ruud – no-one’s idea of a mainstream superstar – while the Margaret Court Arena schedule was well below par, with No.20 seed Arthur Fils and No.18 seed Donna Vekic beginning their tournaments.

Only the most hardcore tennis fans would’ve been pumped to see some of those names. In the night session, Aryna Sabalenka and Alex Zverev were a solid if predictable double-act on Rod Laver Arena, and Aussies Li Tu and Daria Saville did their best to keep the home fans happy.

But the tournament, bizarrely, held back almost every other big name from Sabalenka and Zverev’s halves of the draw to play on Monday.

So Sunday ticket-buyers who’d already realised they weren’t getting the absolute biggest names would’ve been even flatter when they realised Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz, Nick Kyrgios, Thanasi Kokkinakis, Coco Gauff, Naomi Osaka and many more notables were all held over for Monday’s packed schedule. (And to be clear, if you bought a Monday ticket, you should be pumped.)

But Monday got unnecessarily large when it was revealed Jannik Sinner would play then too, instead of on Tuesday. Monday didn’t need the help!

So day two has the frankly ridiculous situation of Djokovic, Alcaraz and Kyrgios all playing at the same time from 7pm – which also sucks for the broadcasters, who can’t show all three of those big names playing!

It’s also weird that Sinner is playing his Round 1 match before Djokovic or Alcaraz, when Djokovic and Alcaraz’s half of the draw was picked to play first. They will play their second-round matches on Wednesday, while Sinner may be waiting over 72 hours for his second-round clash on Thursday, a handy extra rest period for the tournament favourite.

The bigger point is just the sheer oddity of playing so many big matches on Monday instead of spacing them over Sunday, too. There are some massive names who could’ve easily played on centre court, or at least Margaret Court Arena, on day one to bolster that schedule.

For example Iga Swiatek and Stefanos Tsitsipas are both on ground-pass-accessible John Cain Arena in the day session on Monday – hardly Broadway – while the popular Thanasi Kokkinakis is out on Kia Arena.

Sure, he needed a bit of time after withdrawing from the Adelaide International, and player preference has to be considered; but he would’ve been a much stronger Sunday headliner for Margaret Court Arena.

For comparison’s sake, last year day one of the tournament had both defending champions Djokovic and Sabalenka, eventual champion Sinner, three other top-10 seeds and a returning former champion in Caroline Wozniacki, just on the top two courts.

Moving just one of the bigger names from Monday onto Sunday would’ve had flow-on effects to make the entire opening day feel stronger.

Broadly speaking the three-day opening round is a positive for the tournament. But in this case, the schedule makers had a clear unforced error.

Maybe they assumed day one was big enough, just by nature of being day one, to get people to Melbourne Park – but those who came couldn’t have been too happy with the star power they were given.

NEW AUSSIE HOPING TO PACK THE JOINT… AND HER BANK BALANCE

Australian Maya Joint and her first-round opponent Jessica Pegula were two of the biggest stories from tennis’ most recent grand slam.

Pegula, the number seven seed at Melbourne Park this week, charged to her first major final in New York in September, while Joint became embroiled in a legal storm.

The 18-year-old came through qualifying to reach the second round and earn a more than AU$200,000 pay day at Flushing Meadows.

But she walked away with almost none of it.

Joint’s commitment to attend the University of Texas prevented her from boosting her bank account as NCAA rules only allow college athletes to accept US$10,000 in prize money.

Any further winnings can only be used to cover expenses, and as a result Joint became part of an ultimately unsuccessful legal challenge against the NCAA.

She clarified on Sunday that she only took what covered her expenses, and never broke the rules, but in December she made the call to abandon the college route and turn professional.

It was not the first career altering move she has made.

The Michigan born teenager decided as a 16-year-old to switch her allegiance to Australia as her father, Michael Joint, a former professional squash player, is an Australian.

The decision to swap to the green and gold led to a wildcard this week, and the support that helped her go on a giant-killing run in Hobart.

The world No. 118 knocked off 2020 Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin as well as 2023 Australian Open semi-finalist Magda Linette on her way to the semi-finals.

“It’s been amazing. I mean, when I played here for the first time, they really made me feel like I was always representing Australia,” Joint said.

“Yeah, it’s been great. I was playing in Brisbane and in Hobart. The same thing: they really supported me very well. I’m excited for this one.”

On Monday, the self-proclaimed “aggressive baseliner” will receive support like never before.

Her twilight session clash with Pegula on John Cain Arena will precede Nick Kyrgios’ Australian Open comeback.

The rowdiest court at Melbourne Park is always at fever pitch for Kyrgios matches, and they will be eager to warm up their vocal cords by getting behind a fellow Australian.

Joint cannot wait to feed off that energy.

“I hit on John Cain this morning. There wasn’t anyone in there,” she said with a chuckle.

“I got a feel for the court. Hopefully it will be full of Aussie fans. Excited to play on it.”

HOW CLOSE IS TOO CLOSE? AO INNOVATION SLAMMED BY CHAMP

Aryna Sabalenka started her bid for a hattrick of Australian Open titles in impressive fashion on Sunday night in Melbourne but she was far from impressed with a new innovation.

It seems like only yesterday that tennis officials decided a route to engaging new fans was to allow coaching from the stands, though the benefits of this are somewhat questionable.

But Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley has gone a step further by allowing coaches to sit at court level, instead of in the front row of stands, in a new development.

Captains have been allowed to sit courtside during Davis and Billie Jean King Cup matches for decades and the United Cup allows entire teams to sit near the court as supporters.

While it will be fascinating to see what unfolds should Andy Murray opt to sit in the “coaching pod” when he debuts as Novak Djokovic’s mentor on Monday night, not everyone is happy.

After dismissing former US Open champion Sloane Stephens 6-3 6-2 to continue her dazzling form in Australia, Sabalenka said there were some flaws to the new concept.

“Honestly, it’s not like I’m a big fan of that decision. Or if you do that, then make more seats,” she said.

“For example, personally, I like to see the whole team. I want to see the whole people in my box. Even if I’m not looking at each person in my box, I always look at my coach, but I still see everyone. For me that’s important.

“Sometimes I just want to look to my boyfriend for support, for example. I just didn’t want to … look at the coach first, then look in the box because I have a lot of coaches. Four seats is not enough.”

Former finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas said he also found the concept of the “coaching pod”, which allows two seats for support staff, an unnerving innovation.

“I actually laughed when I saw them yesterday. It’s kind of weird,” he said.

“You know why it’s weird? Because I see my coaches and some other team members in that particular box, and the rest of them are upstairs, which I don’t know, I’m not used to it. I guess I will acclimatise at some point.”

The introduction of coaching pods comes after the ITF in October relaxed rules surrounding the coaching players are allowed to receive courtside, with communication allowed at any time aside from during points.

Tiley told The Age that while there are differing views on the merits of courtside coaching, he believed the move would be embraced by players and coaches alike.

“We tested it this week and some coaches were a bit sceptical at first, but then they sat down and said, ‘This is great’,” Tiley said.

“I think we’re going to find much more than the majority will actually sit on the court. You have a great sight line of your player after every point.

“When they come and get their towel, you can talk to them, so you’re almost, in effect, able to coach your player after each point, if you want to.”

AUSSIE OPEN STAKES BOLD CLAIM AS NATION’S PREMIER EVENT

Thunderbolts, lightning and flash flooding made for a dramatic start to the Australian Open from a weather perspective on Sunday but that did not deter a monster crowd in Melbourne.

After a record-breaking Boxing Day Test in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy at the MCG, more than 55,000 fans filed into Melbourne Park for the first session of the grand slam season.

When it comes to hosting international sporting moments, Australia punches well above its weight in several sports and tennis is at the forefront of the major event scene nationally.

Is it the nation’s best sporting event? While F1 officials and Melbourne Cup organisers might raise an objection, the Australian Open could well draw one million fans in this edition.

And the action is as thick as it is fast off the court as well. Just as the major car makers seek supremacy on the F1 track, the major players in tennis seek to start the year with a flourish.

After a couple of turbulent years caused by the pandemic, the wealth associated with tennis has returned in full force for this AO, with global brands splashing their cash around the city.

As the first major of the year, the AO serves as a launching pad for new apparel lines and fresh marketing campaigns, which can be evidenced in a wander through the CBD.

Over the past week, one major brand had claimed a fair section of real estate on Collins St in order to advertise their wares. Another hosted influencers and journalists from around the world. And the tournament’s major sponsors vie with each other to draw A-List celebrities.

From Collingwood captain Darcy Moore to former pop star Danni Minogue, from Olympic sensation Noemie Fox to Chris and Bec Judd, stars in their dozens were on site on Sunday.

Victorian Government officials were on hand alongside legends Evonne Goolagong and John Newcombe, along with Tennis Australia chief executive and AO tournament director Craig Tiley, to boast about the economic impact of the event.

The tournament, which has been locked away at Melbourne Park until 2046, reportedly generated more than $533 million for Victoria last year, with that figure expected to be topped this month.

But the opening ceremony did not go entirely smoothly, with a ball girl who was attending the ceremony fainting midway through proceedings to the alarm of those in attendance.