Aussie, Aussie, Aussie … the countdown begins

With a little over a month before the first Grand Slam of the 2019 season begins in Melbourne, we’re taking a look back at the 2018 event in words – but most importantly for GST – in pictures.

The 106th edition of the Australian Open was a landmark in so many ways.
Not just for the winners Roger Federer and Caroline Wozniacki, but for setting other tournament records.

The tournament was the the 50th edition of the Open era and was the 200th major tournament of the Open era.
It also marked the 30th anniversary of the Australian Open moving from the Kooyong Tennis Club to Melbourne Park.
Defending champion Roger Federer successfully retained his crown, defeating Marin Čilić in the final, 6–2, 6–7(5–7), 6–3, 3–6, 6–1.

It was Federer’s 20th Grand Slam singles title and record-equalling sixth Australian Open men’s singles title. The achievement tied with Roy Emerson and Novak Djokovic.
Federer also became the first male player to win at least six titles at two Grand Slam tournaments (six at the Australian Open and eight at Wimbledon).

He also became the oldest man to win a Grand Slam singles title in the Open era since Ken Rosewall in 1972.
And amazingly, the time span between Federer’s first win at Wimbledon and 2018 (15 years) is an Open era record in the men’s singles field.
This was also the 10th time that Federer has defended a Grand Slam title, with the previous time being at the 2008 US Open. Čilić became the first Croatian player to reach a singles final at the Australian Open.

 

 

Melbourne 2018 also marked the first time since Wimbledon in 2008 that two unseeded players (Chung Hyeon and Kyle Edmund) reached the semi-finals of the men’s singles event at a Grand Slam tournament.
In the womens tournament defending champion Serena Williams chose not to participate, having given birth to her daughter a few months earlier in September 2017.

 

So Caroline Wozniacki became the first Danish player to win a Grand Slam singles title, defeating Simona Halep in the final, 7–6(7–2), 3–6, 6–4.
Wozniacki also regained the WTA No. 1 singles ranking for the first time since 2012.
Both finalists had to battle to reach that last day of action – both had to save match points earlier in the tournament; Halep saved three against Lauren Davis in the third round and then two against Angelique Kerber in the semifinals.
Wozniacki saved two match points against Jana Fett in the second round.

For the record book, the third round tie between Halep and Davis lasted 48 games, tying Chanda Rubin and Arantxa Sánchez Vicario’s 1996 quarterfinal match for the Open’s record for most games played in a women’s match.

At 15 years and 6 months old, Marta Kostyuk became the youngest player to win a main draw match at the Open since Martina Hingis in 1996 and the youngest to reach the third round at any Grand Slam event since Mirjana Lučić-Baroni at the 1997 US Open.