With the 2012 season of the Australian Open all set to begin in Melbourne on Monday, A Seshan traces the highs and lows of the tournament over the years and speculates on the possible contenders for the title this year.
The field of tennis is littered with names of great champions of the distant past, both men and women, who are remembered and referred to often for their skills, despite the passing of years. Tennis aficionados still talk about the “Four Musketeers” — Jean Borotra, Rene Lacoste, Henri Cochet and Jacques Brugnon— who dominated the world of tennis in the 1920s and 1930s. Then there was Donald Budge (1915-2000), one of the only two to win all the four majors in the same year (1938), Fred Perry (1909-1995) who was a colossus in the mid-1930s, and Suzanne Lenglen (1899-1938), a three-time Wimbledon champion who never lost a singles between 1919 and 1926, except when she had to retire halfway through a match due to illness. And, of course, there was Bill Tilden (1893-1953) who had most of his successes in his late 20s and 30s, and whose loss of part of a finger in 1922 was no handicap because he just modified his grip.
On the other hand, it is quite likely that the reader has not heard of Jack Crawford (1935), Adrian Quist (1948), John Bromwich (1946) and Dinny Pails (1947) who were all Australian tennis champions in the years indicated. The championship was called “The Cinderella of Grand Slam Tennis” for a long time because in those early years it was not patronised by the leading players of the sport. For the ones in the West, it would have meant long and time-consuming journeys to Down Under during December-January when they would rather be at home for Christmas. And not to mention, more than a month-and-a-half long trip from Europe to Australia by ship! But since the availability of commercial aviation, and particularly after the commencement of the Open era in 1968, the Australian championships have come into their own, with the titles being as much coveted as those of the others. The Cinderella has now become the “Princess of Grand Slam”, the 2012 season of which opens in Melbourne on January 16.
I remember that in my youth in the 1950s, each year produced one great Australian champion: Frank Sedgman, Ken Rosewall, Rod Laver, Lew Hoad, and so on. Of the only two who have won the Grand Slam so far, Laver (1962 and 1969) is an Australian. In the 28 years between 1946 and 1973, the winning nation in Davis Cup was either from Australia (16) or from the United States of America (12). Now, however, Australia’s rank in Davis Cup is a lowly 20, only one step below India.
In the ATP rankings of January 2, 2012, there is no Australian in the top 30. In the women’s rankings, Samantha Stosur figures at 6, while the next one — Jarmila Gajdosovo — is at a distant 33. The record for wins in the singles championships at the Australian Open is still held by Australia at 94 (51 for men and 43 for women). But, the last time an Australian won the Australian Open was several decades ago — Mark Edmondson (1976) and Chris O’Neil (1978) — both the only unseeded champions so far.
In 2005, Lleyton Hewitt became the first Australian to reach the finals of the Australian Open 18 years after Pat Cash in 1987. It is difficult to fathom the decline in Australian tennis over the years, both in individual championships and in Davis Cup.
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The tournament was last contested on grass in 1987 after which a switch was made to the hard court. The speed of the court is midway between slow clay and fast grass surfaces conducive to long rallies. According to my notes, in the quarter finals of 2011, a record of 35 shots in a rally was set in the match between Alexandr Dolgopolov and Andy Murray. The Rod Laver arena was the first among the Grand Slam courts to have a retractable roof. The steel used in the roof had been made in the plant at Salem, Tamil Nadu. Subsequently, the other major stadium, Hisense Arena, was also equipped with the roof. The roofs are closed during rains or extreme heat.
The sporting event is held at the height of the Australian summer when temperatures reach dangerous levels. For players, it is as much a test of their physical endurance as of skill. I recall that in 2007 the on-court temperature was a sizzling 50 degrees Celsius at one point! Players constantly complained of headaches, dizziness and delusion. The problem was further aggravated by the court surface (Rebound Ace) that retained heat. It has, since then, been changed to Plexicushion, a cushioned, medium-paced acrylic surface with lower rubber content, leading to firmer underfoot conditions, less heat retention and more consistent bounce. The authorities also formulated an extreme heat policy in 1998 which took into account not only temperature but also other ambient factors bearing on play. This policy comes into operation when daytime temperatures hit 35 degrees Celsius and a stipulated stress level is reached. The tournament referee may suspend matches at his discretion.
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Unlike Wimbledon and the US Open, the Indian presence has not been felt much in the Australian or French Opens as far as the singles are concerned. When Mahesh Bhupathi won the mixed doubles title at the Australian Open in 2006, partnering Martina Hingis, he achieved a career Grand Slam. He had a career Grand Slam in men’s doubles as well, in three of which Leander Paes was his partner. These feats have not received as much recognition as they deserve. In 1999, he won three Grand Slam doubles events but failed in the final in the Australian Open. Paes won the mixed doubles title with Martina Navratilova in 2003 at the Australian Open. The victory of Paes and Janko Tipsarevic at the Chennai Open provides hope for a 50-per-cent honour for India at the doubles event at the Australian Open.
So, who will wear the crown in Melbourne on January 29? One interesting feature of the Grand Slam tournaments of 2011 were the four semi-finalists — Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Murray (with one exception at the Australian Open where Nadal retired due to injury caused during his quarter-final match against Ferrer). Djokovic is the defending champion, and for him as well as for Federer and Nadal, winning is crucial as it would lay the foundation for a Grand Slam — the only missing honour for them. One may see this quartet at the semi-finals in Melbourne as well. But there could be dark horses in the form of Jo-Wilfried Tsonga or the latest sensation, Milos Raonic, who had 35 aces to his credit in the final of the Aircel Chennai Open recently and fired an impressive 75 per cent of his serves at 210 plus kmph.
On the women’s side, defending champion Kim Clijsters has a good chance of winning again. Maria Sharapova is reportedly making special efforts to acclimatise herself to conditions in Melbourne. Stosur, the Australian who won the US Open last year, and Serena Williams are the other potential champions.
