Australian Open Round-Up:

We enjoyed a thoroughly entertaining start to the 2013 tennis season at SSC, as we televised all the action from Melbourne Park. The Australia Day long weekend was certainly a great way to enjoy the finals action and we were glad so many of you could join us to cheer on this year’s champions.

The highlight of the weekend was no doubt the Men’s final, which pitted long time combatants Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray together again for the Championship. Breaks of serve were as scarce as spare seats at Rod Lava Arena, with the first two sets both going to tie-breaks and shared one-apiece.

In a match-up that showcased last year’s US Open finalists, gradually the world number one was able to wear down his British opponent on this occasion. The Joker taking out the third and fourth sets more comfortably as Murray failed to reprise the form that had seen him overcome Roger Federer in their epic five set semi-final. Djokovic made history by winning three Australian Open titles in a row, the first man to do so in the professional-era.

The women’s final was contested under more controversial circumstances, after world-number-one Victoria Azarenka won through after using what seemed a strategic “injury time-out” in her semi. Unfortunately the shoe was on the other foot in the final, and perhaps Li Na was wishing she wore a different pokies pair, after badly rolling her ankle having taken out the first set.

The Chinese super-star seemed to never fully recover and despite a couple of injury time outs of her own and a stoppage for Australia Day fireworks, it was the Belarusian that was able to best regain her composure, going back-to-back by taking out the title in three sets.

There was some joy for our local stars in the finals’ doubles action. The unseeded pairing of Casey Delacqua and Ashleigh Barty won through to the final of the Women’s Doubles in their first grand slam outing together. Unfortunately they were not able to complete their fairy-tale run, going down to the Italian top-seeds Erani and Vinci in three sets.

There was more luck for our Aussie athletes in the Mixed-Doubles Final with our pairing of Matthew Ebden and Jarmila Gajdosova combining to take out the title in straight-sets. Both athletes were ecstatic at their result in the press conference afterwards and hoped it would translate to better performances in their singles careers.

There were more promising signs for the future in the Junior Boys Singles with an all-Australian Final. Having to put their friendship aside, Nick Kyrgios was able to get the better of his compatriot Thanasi Kokkinakis, taking out the contest in two tough fort sets.

With all the televised action now over and the world’s best players leaving our shores, it is surely time to turn your attention to getting your own game back on court. We have been inundated with tennis bookings throughout January, so make sure you plan ahead and get a few friends together for a hit down at Strathfield Sports Club. Hopefully this rain clears and we will see you back on court soon!