A new year means a whole new fresh slate of Grand Slam tournaments – and the first is right around the corner.
The biggest names in tennis are descending into Melbourne for the Australian Open 2022, including rising star and BBC SPOTY winner Emma Raducanu and five-time runner-up Sir Andy Murray.
Also flying the flag for Britain are Cameron Norrie and Dan Evans fresh off their quarter-final placement at the Davis Cup Finals – though they’ll face stiff competition from Rafael Nadal as he chases a historic 21st Grand Slam title.
Raducanu will also have to contend with defending champion Naomi Osaka and home challenger Ashleigh Barty, no mean feat given that Barty is currently ranked No. 1 in the world.
It’s sure to be a tournament for the ages that could well see a few records broken, but luckily you can catch all the action on discovery+ where every single match can be streamed live and on-demand.
Read on for everything you need to know about the Australian Open 2022 tennis tournament – and how you can spectate every serve with a limited-time offer on discovery+.
When is the Australian Open 2022?
The first Grand Slam event of the year, the Australian Open starts Monday 17th January and runs until Sunday 30th January.
The tournament is returning to its usual schedule after being postponed to February for the first time in history in 2021.
How to watch and live stream Australian Open in the UK
You can stream every match of the 2022 Australian Open live and on-demand on discovery+.
The discovery+ Entertainment & Sport plan is available for £6.99 a month.
For a limited time only, you can get 50% off an annual discovery+ Entertainment and Sport pass, allowing you to see a whole year’s worth of live sport and real-life entertainment for just £29.99 – including the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022.
Offer Terms: 18+. Offer ends 20/02/2022. Entertainment & Sport Pass: £29.99 for the first year, then automatically renews annually at £59.99/year unless cancelled prior to renewal. Offer available on selected devices. 2.5 Mbps recommended.
!["Discovery+]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2022/01/DPLUS_AO2022_UK_KV_-965ba71.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C877" "\"Discovery+")
As well as coverage of the Australian Open 2022, a discovery+ Entertainment & Sport pass grants you access to exclusive original shows, livestreaming and catch-up from discovery’s lifestyle and factual channels and sports programming through Eurosport.
Stream now at discoveryplus.com, or download discovery+ from your favourite app store. The app is available on a wide variety of platforms and devices, including Amazon, Apple, Roku, Google and Samsung.
Watch the Australian Open in the US
ESPN and Tennis Channel will once again be showing the Australian Open live in the US, with ESPN picking up coverage of the all-important finals.
Fans can also stream matches at ESPN.com as well as the ESPN app.
Where is the Australian Open 2022 held?
The tournament is being held at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The venue has been the traditional location of the tournament since 1988.
The final and top-seed matches will take place in Rod Laver Arena – Melbourne Park’s biggest court – while the nearby Margaret Court Arena and Melbourne Arena will also host matches during the first grand slam of the year.
Australian Open 2022 schedule
The tournament will once again be spread over a 14 day period, with men’s and women’s singles matches taking place mostly simultaneously.
A provisional schedule is available below, with the men’s semi-finals set to take place on the same day for the first time. Day sessions start around midnight UK time for those dedicated enough to watch live – but thankfully discovery+ will have every match available on demand also.
- First round (Men’s and Women’s singles) – 17th/18th January – play starts at midnight; night session begins at 8am
- Second round (Men’s and Women’s singles) – 19th/20th January – play starts at midnight; night session begins at 8am
- Third round (Men’s and Women’s singles) – 21st/22nd January – play starts at midnight; night session begins at 8am
- Fourth round (Men’s and Women’s singles) – 23rd/24th January – play starts at midnight; night session begins at 8am
- Quarter-finals (Men’s and Women’s singles) – 25/26th January – play starts at midnight; night session begins at 8am
- Semi-finals (Men’s and Women’s singles) – 27th/28th January – both women’s singles semi-finals begin at 8:30am, first men’s singles semi-final at 1am, second men’s singles semi-final at 8:30am
- Women’s final – 29th January – begins at at 8:30am, followed by mixed doubles final
- Men’s final – 30th January – men’s doubles final at 4am, men’s singles final at 8:30am
Are fans allowed to attend Australian Open 2022?
Yes – officials are planning for full capacity in all stadiums this year, which in pre-pandemic times saw up to 800,000 fans attend Melbourne Park.
Last year crowds were limited to 30,000 a day in socially distanced seating, until a five-day snap lockdown on 12th February meant the tournament continued behind closed doors until 17th February.
The Australian Open 2022 will also see the return of freedom of movement throughout the park and the return of ground passes, after the 2021 tournament saw the venue divided into three zones in order to limit mixing.
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