A new year brings a new tennis season and it is about to kick into gear as the world’s best battle it out at the Australian Open. The first Grand Slam of 2025 is just days away and, as ever, there is plenty to be excited about, not least the star-studded partnership between Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray.
The Briton, who retired from the sport at the Olympics last summer, is coaching Djokovic in Melbourne, where they met four times in the final of this tournament. All of those were won by Djokovic, who is hoping the addition of Murray to his team can help him bounce back from a first year without a Grand Slam title since 2017.
Jannik Sinner arrives as defending champion and the man to beat on hard courts, having also won the US Open last year. Carlos Alcaraz, meanwhile, has the chance to complete the Career Grand slam at the age of 21. On the women’s side of the draw, Aryna Sabalenka is eyeing a third straight Australian Open title, and like Sinner she swept the hard-court Grand Slams in 2024.
However, Coco Gauff is in superb form, having won the WTA Finals in December and then helped USA to victory at the United Cup event last week, which included a straight-sets win over Iga Swiatek. The fortnight of action at the Australian Open begins on Sunday, January 12, 2025 and runs through to the men’s final on Sunday, January 26, 2025.
