Grand Slams

Grand Slams

In depth examination of the four biggest tennis tournaments in the world

    Imagine that you missed a shot. This missed shot was in front of thousands of people watching. You start to sweat and realize you don’t have much time left. Gripping your racket you prepare for the last minute. This is the Grand Slam now. Whether you are a tennis fan or a sports fan in general, you better know the difference between the four biggest tennis tournaments in the world.

 

    Grand Slams in tennis are the biggest, most rewarding and the most important tournaments which are also called “The Majors.” There are four Grand Slams held every year, each taking place on a different surface. This fact often leads to players whose style of play suits a particular surface being more successful at some Slams than others. The four tournaments are: Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and US Open. In order to really appreciate these tournaments it’s important to dive deeper into each one, and what makes them unique and different. 

 

Australian Open 

    You have probably heard about the beautiful and sunny Australia, and I am sure you have even heard about the famous kangaroos. But have you heard about the Australian Open? The opening Grand Slam of the year takes place in Melbourne, Australia between February 8th to 21st, is the Australian Open (Tennis Australia 2021). This is the favorite tournament of the year for most of the players and fans, and they also call it “The Happy Slam” (Tennis Gyan). Initially, the surface the tournament was played on was grass from 1905-1987, and then the officials decided to switch the surface to cushioned polyurethane rubber court which is similar to a hard court from 1988 until today (Bullock).

    Some facts about the Australian Open tournament:

-   The Australian Open site includes 39 courts, while the center court stadium is named after the great Australian tennis player Rod Laver and contains 14,820 seats.

-   The tournament is the highest attended Grand Slam event with over 812,000 people attending in 2020.

-   The winner of the men’s / women’s singles takes a prize money of 4,120,000 Australian Dollars (AUD).

-   Novak Djokovic (men’s tennis world number 1) holds the record for winning the most Australian Open titles, having won 8 times.

French Open

    The French Open tournament which is also called “Roland Garros,” is the second Grand Slam of the calendar year and the only tournament of the four Grand Slams to be held on clay courts. The tournament takes place in Paris, France between May 24th to June 13th. The Roland Garros site contains twenty clay courts, and the main stadium’s capacity is approximately 15,000 seats. The stadium is named after “Philippe Chatrier” who was a French tennis player, and was the president of the French Tennis Federation for 20 years and later became the president of the International Tennis Federation for 14 years. Also, the name of the tournament was taken after a French aviator called Roland Garros, who was a French fighter pilot during WWI (Tennis Gyan). The prize money for winning the tournament is 1,400,000 Euros (Perfect Tennis).

    There is one more interesting fact about the Roland Garros tournament. Rafael Nadal, a Spanish tennis player ranked number two in the world, holding the highest record of winnings in the Roland Garros history. Nadal has won the title 13 times (2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020), and by doing so he received the nickname- “The King of Clay” (BBC Sport).

Wimbledon

    Wimbledon is the third Grand Slam of the year, taking place between June 28th to July 11th.  Wimbledon is the oldest and the most prestigious tennis tournament in the world. The tournament has been held since 1877 in a club located in England, in a town named Wimbledon (Tennis Gyan). The surface the tournament is being played on is grass, which makes it harder on the players to adjust since the ball doesn’t jump as much. The site of Wimbledon contains 18 grass courts. The Wimbledon Centre Court is the main court at the championship with a capacity of 15,000 seats. The prize money for winning the tournament is the highest among all Grand Slams, with 2,350,000 British Pounds (3,319,845 USD) (Wimbledon). What makes Wimbledon so unique and fun to watch is the strict dress code. All players must be dressed entirely in white, otherwise they are not allowed to step on the court. The best grass court player of all time, and some if not all would say the best tennis player of all time, is Roger Federer. Federer is a Swiss tennis player who has the record of 237 consecutive weeks as the world number one (Wikipedia). Federer also holds the highest record of winnings at Wimbledon, as he won it 8 times (Tennis Gyan).

    Last fun fact about Wimbledon. The longest tennis match ever was taking place in Wimbledon in 2010 between an American and French tennis player. The match lasted 11 hours and five minutes, and was played over three days. The American John Isner won the titanic battle, and I am not surprised that he could not even make it to the next round, and had to retire from the tournament. Yes, Tennis is a brutal sport.

US Open

    The US Open is the last Grand Slam of the year which takes place in New York, USA between August 30th to September 12th. The US open is one of the oldest tournaments in the world after Wimbledon. It was first played in 1881. The tournament is being played on a hard court surface. The site contains 22 courts. The main stadium is called “Arthur Ashe Stadium” which is the biggest tennis stadium in the world. The stadium has a capacity of 23,770 seats. (Wikipedia). The prize money for winning the tournament is 3,000,000 USD. The three players who won most titles of the US Open are Roger Federer, Jimmy Connors and Pete Sampras.

    Now you know what Grand Slams are, what makes them different and unique, and if you haven’t done so yet, maybe one day you will have a seat in one of these huge stadiums. 

Works Cited

About the Tournament. Tournament Info AO 2021 | Australian Open. (n.d.).    https://ausopen.com/tournament-info#:~:text=The%20Australian%20Open%20will%20be,February%20%E2%80%93%20Sunday%2021%20February%202021.

BBC. (n.d.). French Open 2020: Why is Rafael Nadal so good on clay? BBC Sport. https://www.bbc.com/sport/tennis/54499161.

Bullock, J. (2016, November 11). All You Need to Know About the Australian Open Tennis Championships. HowTheyPlay. https://howtheyplay.com/individual-sports/All-You-Need-to-Know-About-the-Australian-Open-Tennis-Championships.

Jonathan. (n.d.). French Open Prize Money 2021 [Confirmed] - Roland Garros. peRFect Tennis. https://www.perfect-tennis.com/prize-money/french open/#Prize_Money_Breakdown_for_the_French_Open_2021.

Ramachandran, K., & Social ShizKaoushik RamachandranAuthor and Founder at Tennis GyanHey! I am Kaoushik & I love the sport of tennis. I am a huge fan of Rafa Nadal and pretty much follow all his matches from Grand Slams right down to ATP 250s. I use a Babolat Pure Strike rac. (2021, March 22). All You Need to Know about the 4 Grand Slams in Tennis. Tennis Gyan. https://tennisgyan.com/grand-slams-tennis/.

Wikimedia Foundation. (2021, June 15). List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis players. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ATP_number_1_ranked_singles_tennis_players#:~:text=Roger%20Federer%20has%20the%20record,consecutive%20weeks%20at%20No.%201.

wimbledon.com. (n.d.). https://www.wimbledon.com/en_GB/atoz/dates.html.