Enjoy January in Australia with a courtside view of the tennis greats. Start the new year watching eight prestigious pairs of men and women play at Perth’s Hopman Cup. See international players warm-up for the Australian Open in sunny Brisbane and historic Hobart. Get spectator seats to top tennis at the Medibank International in Sydney’s Olympic Park. Watch the world’s best men, women and doubles teams compete in Melbourne’s Australian Open, the first Grand Slam tournament of the year, at the end of January. Off-court, enjoy a host of live entertainment and the vibrant summer lifestyle of Australia’s cities.
Australia's summer of tennis launches with Perth's Hopman Cup, an invitational mixed competition for eight national teams, each with a male and female representative. Watch these esteemed players thrash it out in dramatic singles and mixed doubles matches at Perth's Burswood Dome. The 2010 Australian team will feature former world champion Lleyton Hewitt and Samantha Stosur, a former doubles number one. The coveted tennis-ball trophies are encrusted with diamonds from Western Australia’s Kimberley region.
When you're not in the spectator stands, get out and explore Perth. Lie on the long white beaches, wander Fremantle's historic seaside streets, visit the Swan Valley vineyards and explore tranquil Rottnest Island.
On the other side of the country, the Brisbane International tennis competition also runs in the first week of January. Watch the male heavy-hitters of tennis warm up for the Australian Open on the outdoor hard courts of the Queensland Tennis Centre. Away from the court, cruise down the Brisbane River, explore South Bank’s sprawling cultural precinct, dine out in Fortitude Valley or day trip to nearby Moreton Bay.
In the second week of January, female tennis stars have the chance to perfect their serves at the Moorilla Hobart International. Watch the women battle it out at Hobart’s Domain Tennis Centre, in between discovering Hobart’s sailboats, sandstone buildings and seafood restaurants. Wander historic Salamanca Place, cruise down the Derwent River and climb windswept Mt Wellington.
Sydney’s Medibank International rolls out in mid-January in Sydney Olympic Park Tennis Centre. Get a stadium view of the sweat, serves and tantrums of the world’s biggest male and female tennis players. Then soak up Sydney in summer, when the beaches, harbour, gardens and inner-city precincts are given over to picnics, barbeques, outdoor cinema and the cultural and arts events of the Sydney Festival.
Tennis-lovers won’t want to miss the big event – the Australian Open at Melbourne Park in the second half of January. It’s the first of four Grand Slams on the international tennis calendar, attracting stars such as Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic, Andy Roddick, Lleyton Hewitt, Dinara Safina, Serena and Venus Williams, Maria Sharapova and Samantha Stosur. See these stratospheric tennis talents compete in men’s, women’s singles and specialised doubles teams for a share in more than $20 million in prize money. Live daily entertainment – from free music concerts and DJ sessions to an all-day music festival and a huge carnival village – complements the on-court action.
Of course the city of Melbourne hums with its own day-and-night entertainment. See art exhibitions in Federation Square, dine out in the city’s winding, gothic laneways, shop along Chapel Street and swim from St Kilda Beach.
Whoever the winners, you can claim your own game, set and match on a summer tennis holiday around Australia.