Tournament Facts

Draw

The singles draw ceremony is held on Friday 11 January. Fields are made up as follows:

Men's singles

128 (104 direct entries based on rankings, 16 qualifiers, eight wildcards).

Women's singles

128 (108 direct entries, 12 qualifiers, eight wildcards).

Men's doubles

64 pairs, including seven wildcards.

Women's doubles

64 pairs, including seven wildcards.

Mixed doubles

32 pairs, including seven wildcards.

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Computer rankings

Computer rankings are used as a basis for the seeding of 32 players in the singles championships. The first and second seeds are placed, respectively, at the top and bottom of the draw. All remaining seeds are then randomly drawn and placed in designated positions in the draw, followed by the remainder of the field, which is randomly drawn from top to bottom of the draw by IBM computer technology.

Ranking points

Players win twice as many points for a win in a Grand Slam match as they do for winning a match at the next level - ATP Tennis Masters Series and WTA Tour Tier Premier tournaments.

Electronic review

Rod Laver Arena, Hisense Arena, Margaret Court Arena and, for the first time, Show Courts 2 and 3 will utilise Hawk-Eye technology to conduct electronic reviews of disputed line calls. The Australian Open adopts the 'three-plus-one' electronic review system. Players will receive three incorrect challenges during each set and a fourth challenge if a set goes to a tiebreaker.

Court surface

The vibrant Plexicushion surface enhances ball visibility. Trademarked as 'Australian Open True Blue', the courts are two-toned, allowing for greater contrast and improved depth perception.

Wilson balls

Wilson supplies more than 4000 dozen tennis balls for use during the tournament. Six new balls are used for the five-minute warm-up and the first seven games and six new balls are provided every nine games thereafter. Used balls are sold on site.

Extreme heat policy

The Australian Open Extreme Heat Policy (EHP) will be applied at the Referee's discretion and may be altered at any time.

At the Referee's discretion, when the Wet Bulb Globe Temperature only (WBGT) is equal to or above the pre-determined threshold, the Referee may suspend the commencement of any further matches on outside courts.

Any matches currently in progress will continue until the end of the current set. At the completion of the set, play will be suspended.

Where play in any match commences outdoors (or with a roof open) at the Referee's Discretion, the match will continue until the completion of the set. At the end of the set, a decision may be made by the Referee to close the roof for the remainder of the match and the following matches, when the EHP is still in effect.

The roof will only be closed because of extreme heat if a decision has been made by the Referee to suspend the completion or commencement of matches on the outdoor courts.

Supplement for women's singles and junior singles only; to allow a 10 minute break between the second and third sets when a WBGT reading of 28 has been recorded prior to the calling of the match by Tournament Control. Readings are continually made throughout the day.

The 10 minute break will not apply between the second and third sets, if play had previously been suspended after the first set due to the EHP.