10 October 2024 | tennis.com.au

Australia’s men have enjoyed a record-setting year on the tour and are set to shine in front of their home crowd at AO 2025.

Alex de Minaur leads the charge after a breakthrough year that saw him crack the top 10 for the first time.

“Alex is a true Aussie inspiration. He’s had an incredible year, shown tremendous resilience through injury and I have no doubt he’ll be ready with his trademark grit and determination and bring everything he has to the AO in January,” AO Tournament Director Craig Tiley said.

Alexei Popyrin’s career-best win over Djokovic at the US Open was one of the highlights of 2024, and he now finds himself ranked inside the top 25.

“Alexei’s victory over Novak was one for the ages. He’s been in incredible form, and it’s exciting to see him rise in the rankings,” Tiley said.

“Jordan Thompson has played his way into the top 30 and could see himself seeded at a Grand Slam for the first time. It was great to see him team up with Max Purcell to win the US Open doubles title and they’ll be coming into the Aussie summer in great form.

“The sheer depth of the Australian men is remarkable, with Chris O’Connell, James Duckworth, Rinky Hijikata, Thanasi Kokkinakis, Aleksander Vukic, and Adam Walton all in the top 100 and making their mark. Having 10 men in the top 100 – that’s the strongest we’ve been in a long time, and the future looks bright.

“It’s been great to hear Nick Kyrgios touting his return to the court, and that his training is on track for the summer. He brings a big game and bigger energy to the AO – he’s truly an excitement machine – and we can’t wait to see him back.”

Tiley is also excited by the state of women’s tennis in Australia, with several young Aussie stars making notable progress in 2024.

“Olivia Gadecki has powered into the top 100 after reaching the final in Guadalajara and is now Australia’s No.1 woman, and Ajla Tomljanovic joined her there after her recent WTA title in Hong Kong, and she continues to make an impressive comeback from injury.

“Promising young talents like 18-year-old Maya Joint, Talia Gibson, and Taylah Preston continue to rise through the ranks, while it was also exciting to see 16-year-old Emerson Jones hit the world No.1 junior ranking – the first Aussie girl to do so since Jelena Dokic in 1998 – and reach the junior girls’ finals at both the Australian Open and Wimbledon.

“It’s been a great year for Aussie tennis, we have a solid group of established players along with some amazing young talent coming through, and we’re excited to see what they can do in front of a home crowd.”

Australia’s success on the global stage was not limited to the singles court.

“Matt Ebden and John Peers’ Olympic gold victory in Paris was a truly special moment and I’d like to congratulate them both again,” Tiley said.

“We all enjoyed the emotion of their stunning, come-from-behind win, and the celebration with their families was unforgettable.

“Matt started the year with the Australian Open doubles title, teaming with Rohan Bopanna. Jordan Thompson and Max Purcell reached the doubles final at Wimbledon, and it was fantastic to see them go one better in New York, winning the US Open … and with that win Jordan became the seventh Australian to capture a Grand Slam men’s doubles title within the past three years.”

Thompson’s Grand Slam breakthrough achieves an incredible 45-year milestone, marking the first time since 1979 that seven different Australians won a Grand Slam doubles title within a three-year period. *

The Australian Open will present another Grand Slam first in 2025, with the introduction of qualifying for the wheelchair event.

Each wheelchair tennis division, men’s, women’s and Quads, will have a four-player qualifying draw with two players progressing to the main draw. The Junior Wheelchair Tennis Championship will make its debut at Australian Open 2025, marking a historic moment in the tournament’s history.

Eight junior athletes will compete in this milestone event from 21 to 25 January, paving the way for future generations in wheelchair tennis.

Queensland teenager Ben Wenzel made history at the US Open in September, becoming the first Australian junior wheelchair player in history to capture a Grand Slam title when he and his Dutch partner Ivar van Rijt were crowned the US Open 2024 boys’ wheelchair doubles champions.

*Australian Grand Slam men’s doubles champions since 2022

• Australian Open 2022 Thanasi Kokkinakis / Nick Kyrgios
• Wimbledon 2022 Matt Ebden / Max Purcell
• Australian Open 2023 Rinky Hijikata / Jason Kubler
• Australian Open 2024 Matt Ebden / Rohan Bopanna (IND)
• US Open 2024 Max Purcell / Jordan Thompson