2011 Australian Open

The 2011 Australian Open was the 99th edition of the Australian Open, that was part of the 2011 ATP World Tour and the 2011 WTA Tour calendars, under the Grand Slam category. The tournament consisted of men's and women's singles and doubles draws as well as a mixed doubles event. There were also singles and doubles events for boys and girls (players under 18), part of the Grade A category of tournaments of the junior tour. There were also events for wheelchair tennis players, they competed in two categories: Paraplegic players where men and women play in separate competitions and a category for Quadriplegics, shortened to Quads and is a mixed event. These competitions are part of the NEC tour, under the Grand Slam category. The tournament was played on Plexicushion Prestige AO hard courts, which were rated a medium-fast pace by the ITF. The tournament took place over twenty-five courts, including three showcourts: the Hisense Arena, the Margaret Court Arena and the Rod Laver Arena (the Hisense and Rod Laver Arenas have roofs which allow play to continue indoors should the roof be needed). ==Points and prize money==

Point distribution Below is a series of tables for each of the competitions showing the ranking points on offer for each event. Senior points Junior points Wheelchair points Prize money The 2011 Australian Open offered record prize money to both men and women of a total of A$25 million (US$24 million), up 3.8% on the total prize money from 2010. The winners of the singles titles took home A$2.2 million (US$2.1 million) with the finalists receiving A$1.1 million (US$1 million). To put it into perspective Kim Clijsters and Rafael Nadal both took home US$1.7 million for winning the 2010 US Open. Below is the list of prize money given to each player in the main draw of the professional competitions; all prize money is in Australian dollars (A$); doubles prize money is distributed per pair. Men's and women's singles • Winners: $2,200,000 • Runners-up: $1,100,000 • Semi-finalists: $420,000 • Quarter-finalists: $210,000 • Fourth round: $93,000 • Third round: $54,500 • Second round: $32,000 • First round: $20,000 Men's and women's doubles • Winners: $454,500 • Runners-up: $227,250 • Semi-finalists: $113,000 • Quarter-finalists: $56,000 • Third round: $31,500 • Second round: $17,200 • First round: $9,600 Mixed doubles • Winners: $135,500 • Runners-up: $67,500 • Semi-finalists: $33,900 • Quarter-finalists: $15,500 • Second round: $7,800 • First round: $3,800 ==Fundraising for the Queensland floods==

Following widespread flooding in Queensland, several players decided to raise money for the cause. The Association of Tennis Professionals and the Women's Tennis Association donated ten dollars for every ace served during the Australian Open as well as during the two pre-tournament joint events in Brisbane and Sydney. In total, the ATP and WTA raised $51,070. In Brisbane, Andy Roddick and Sam Stosur pledged a hundred dollars for every ace they hit, which was also matched by Australian player Matthew Ebden when he played in Sydney the following week. Roddick later doubled his pledge to two hundred dollars. In total, Roddick hit fifty four aces, raising just under eleven thousand dollars for his efforts during the Brisbane tournament. In addition to this, the Brisbane International donated another five thousand dollars. American player Bethanie Mattek-Sands pledged to donate five percent of her prize money from the Hobart International and Australian Open to the cause. The ITF donated $25,000 towards the rebuilding of tennis facilities. Rally for Relief On 16 January, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Kim Clijsters, Novak Djokovic, Lleyton Hewitt, Andy Murray, Andy Roddick, Justine Henin, Ana Ivanovic, Victoria Azarenka, Vera Zvonareva, Caroline Wozniacki and Queenslanders Sam Stosur and Pat Rafter played a charity match at Rod Laver Arena to raise money for the flood efforts. Tickets to the event cost twenty dollars, and other events – such as an auction of shirts signed by the players – also took place. Queensland Energy Resources pledged to match the total amount of money raised. The event raised $1.8 million. ==Singles players==

'''Men's singles''' ;Women's singles ==Events==

Seniors There were five competitions open to professional tennis players. The Association of Tennis Professionals and Women's Tennis Association awarded ranking points in all events apart from the mixed doubles. The singles draws were contested by one hundred and twenty-eight players, while sixty-four teams partook in the double's events, and thirty-two teams lined up in the mixed doubles competition. Men's singles won the Australian Open for the second time. At the start of the 2011 Australian Open, World Number one Rafael Nadal was on the edge of history, as he had an opportunity to become the first man since Rod Laver in 1969 to hold all four Grand Slams at the same time, after winning the previous three. This would not be the Grand Slam, but the media had dubbed the feat if Nadal was to achieve it the "Rafa Slam", which was taken from the "Serena Slam" which was coined when Serena Williams won all four Grand Slam titles in a row spanning two calendar years, which in turn was taken from the "Tiger Slam" in which golfer Tiger Woods accomplished a similar feat in golf. Nadal was the number one seed and led the field. The other top ten seeds were; defending Australian Open champion and sixteen time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer, 2008 Australian Open winner Novak Djokovic, two time Grand Slam finalists Robin Söderling and Andy Murray, Wimbledon runner up Tomáš Berdych, David Ferrer, 2003 US Open champion Andy Roddick, Fernando Verdasco and Mikhail Youzhny. The start of the 2011 Australian Open saw all the seeds apart from Gulbis, Tsonga, Bellucci and Nalbandian all survived final set deciders. The second round witnessed all the seeds go through except Michaël Llodra who lost to qualifier Milos Raonic, Almagro and Federer all survived final set deciders to progress to the third round. Raonic continued his form from the previous round as he upset Youzhny this time in four sets, however the upset of the tournament happened as Nadal went out. The "Rafa Slam" attempt came to an end on Australia Day in straight sets against Ferrer, a year to the day since Nadal last lost a Grand Slam match. The semifinals witnessed Djokovic taking out Federer in straight sets The start of the 2011 Australian Open saw all the seeds apart from Rezaï, Other fourth round matches saw Sevastova's run end against Wozniacki and Makarova's end against Clijsters, while Petkovic upset Sharapova in straight sets. Championship match result Kim Clijsters defeated Li Na, 3–6, 6–3, 6–3. with the exception being the seventh seeded team of Lukáš Dlouhý and Paul Hanley who exited in round one. Lastly, this event saw four teams exit in the quarterfinal round, which those was the 4th seeded team of Łukasz Kubot and Oliver Marach, Mariusz Fyrstenberg and Marcin Matkowski the 5 seeded team, the 6th seeded and 2010 Wimbledon Champions Jürgen Melzer and Philipp Petzschner, and the 8th seeded team of Michaël Llodra and Nenad Zimonjić. In the semifinals Bhupathi and Peas beat Max Mirnyi and Daniel Nestor in the final set. This set up a final against the Bryan Brothers who won in straight sets over Butorac and Rojer. In the championship match the Bryan Brothers won in straight sets for their third title in a row. This was also the Bryan Brothers tenth Men's Doubles Grand Slam title leaving them one behind the Woodies (Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde) all time grand slam record of 11 titles. Championship match result Bob Bryan / Mike Bryan defeated Mahesh Bhupathi / Leander Paes, 6–3, 6–4. All the seeds made it through the opening round with the exception of Francesca Schiavone and Rennae Stubbs, who lost, winning just five games in what was Stubbs' final Australian Open. In round two the biggest casualties were the departure of the number four seeds; Llagostera Vives and Martínez Sánchez in straight sets. In the third round the number six, seven and eighth seeds all crashed out. In the quarterfinals Huber won the battle of the ex-partners as she downed Black's team to set up a semifinal with Dulko and Penetta. The other semi was filled by Azarenka and Kirilenko and the number two seeds. In the semis the Number one seeds advanced to the final where after a shock they faced Azerenka and Kilrenko. In the final Dulko and Pennetta came from a set down to win. Championship match result Gisela Dulko / Flavia Pennetta defeated Victoria Azarenka / Maria Kirilenko, 2–6, 7–5, 6–1. Mixed doubles won her first Australian Open Mixed Doubles crown. She was partnered by Daniel Nestor. The mixed doubles field was led by top seeds and US Open champions Bob Bryan and Liezel Huber. Other significant seeds were number two seeds Daniel Nestor and Katarina Srebotnik, Nestor's ex-doubles partner Nenad Zimonjić and Maria Kirilenko are the third seeds. Fourth seeds were defending champions Leander Paes and Cara Black, while the fifth and sixth seeds were Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi and Květa Peschke and Wesley Moodie and Lisa Raymond. All the seeded teams made it through the first round apart from the teams of Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi and Květa Peschke who lost to Rennae Stubbs and Chris Guccione and Moody and Reymond who lost to Horia Tecău and Bethanie Mattek-Sands. The second round witnessed the number one seeds Bryan and Huber withdraw and the defending champions, Paes and Black go out to Paul Hanley and Chan Yung-jan after two tiebreak sets. The quarterfinals saw no upsets as Nestor and Srebotnik, Zimonjic and Kirlienko, Hanley and Chan and Tecau and Mettek–Sands made the semifinals. In the semifinals Nestor and Srebotnik won in straight sets against Zimonjic and Kirilenko. Their opponents in the final were Hanley and Chan after they won a match tiebreak 11–9 against Tecau and Mettek–Sands. The final came down to a match tiebreak which the number two seeds, Nestor and Srebotnik won. It was Nestor's second Australian Open mixed title while for Srebotnik it was her first. Championship match result Katarina Srebotnik / Daniel Nestor defeated Chan Yung-jan / Paul Hanley, 6–3, 3–6, [10–7]. The main draws took place between 23 and 29 January 2011. Boys' singles World number one Jiří Veselý led the field. Other top seeds included World number two Dominic Thiem, Orange Bowl Champion George Morgan and World number five Mate Pavić. In the first round of the tournament Pavić exited in straight sets to Karim Hossam. While fellow seeds Dimitri Bretting, Joris De Loore and Ben Wagland also went out of the tournament. Also in action was Vesley and the 2010 finalist Sean Berman who both won their opening matches. Luke Saville caused the biggest upset in the second round as he ousted World number two Thiem in straight sets while Veselý and Morgan progressed with straight sets wins. The third round saw Morgan and Saville win epics in the final set. The quarterfinals saw Veselý, Morgan, Carballés and Saville reach the semifinals, where Veselý and Saville reached the final. In the final Veselý claimed his first junior Grand Slam title as he lost just three games against home hope Saville. Championship match result Jiří Veselý defeated Luke Saville, 6–0, 6–3. Girls' singles . The 2011 Australian Open girls' field was led by the World number one, US Open and youth Olympic champion, Daria Gavrilova. Joining the Russian leading the field was An-Sophie Mestach, Irina Khromacheva and Monica Puig. While Orange Bowl champion Lauren Davis who competed in the main draw of the women's singles was the third seed and she was also joined by Caroline Garcia who also appeared in the women's draw. move into the second round. Gavrilova, however, was not in the second round as she was dumped out in straight sets by fifteen-year-old Kanami Tsuji Puig, in the second round got rid of the last of the home contingent losing just two games in the process. Eugenie Bouchard caused the biggest upset of round three when she lost just three games against Davis. Garcia caused an upset in the quarterfinals as she upset the number four seed Khromacheva in straight sets. The semifinals witnessed Mestach drop her first and only set of the tournament when she defeated Garcia whilst Puig saw off Bouchard in straight sets. In the final Mestach defeated Puig in straight sets to win her first junior Grand Slam title. Championship match result An-Sophie Mestach defeated Monica Puig, 6–4, 6–2. Horansky and Vesely triumphed in straight sets in the final over Wagland and Whttington. In the final Mestach and Schuurs defeated Hozumi and Kato in straight sets for their first Grand Slam doubles title. A total of $63,000 was awarded in prize money across all the events. Wheelchair men's singles In the opening round World number one Shingo Kunieda defeated Ronald Vink for the loss of just one game. Kunieda would play Robin Ammerlaan in the semifinals after the Dutchman defeated home hope Ben Weekes. In the other half of the draw Stéphane Houdet saw off Maikel Scheffers while Stefan Olsson saw off Houdet's doubles partner Nicolas Peifer. Kunieda defeated Houdet for his twelfth Grand Slam title losing just three games. Championship match result Shingo Kunieda defeated Stéphane Houdet, 6–0, 6–3. Wheelchair women's singles won her eighth Australian Open and recorded her 404th consecutive match win. There were eight entries into the singles competition. On her Grand Slam debut Marjolein Buis won in three sets against Annick Sevenans to reach the semifinals. Also into the semifinals were World number one Esther Vergeer who recorded her four hundred and second consecutive match win with a 6–0, 6–0 win over her doubles partner, Sharon Walraven. Buis then took on World number two and home favourite Daniela Di Toro who lost just three games on Australia Day against Aniek van Koot. While Jiske Griffioen would play Vergeer in the semifinals after defeating Grand Slam debutant Jordanne Whiley in straight sets. In the final Vergeer claimed her eighth Australian Open title as she defeated di Toro without losing a game to chalk up her four hundredth and fourth consecutive win. Championship match result Esther Vergeer defeated Daniela Di Toro, 6–0, 6–0. Whilst World number one David Wagner defeated his doubles partner Nick Taylor for the loss of two games. In the final round robin matches, Norfolk defeated Taylor for the loss of just three games, while Wagner defeated Lapthorne in straight sets. The win for Norfolk and the loss for Lapthorne meant that Norfolk would play Wagner in the final. In the final Wagner defeated Norfolk for the loss of just five games. It was Wagner's first Australian Open singles title. Championship match result David Wagner defeated Peter Norfolk, 6–2, 6–3. Wheelchair women's doubles There were four entries to this competition. Esther Vergeer and Sharon Walraven defeated Daniela Di Toro and Jordanne Whiley in straight sets to make the final. The final was turned into an all-Dutch affair as Aniek van Koot and Jiske Griffioen joined them after defeating Marjolein Buis and Annick Sevenans in two tiebreaks. Championship match result Andrew Lapthorne / Peter Norfolk defeated Nicholas Taylor / David Wagner, 6–3, 6–3. ==Spectatorship==

Broadcast The 2011 Australian Open was broadcast around the world with eleven different broadcasters officially screening the event. Channel 7 was the host broadcaster, with ESPN covering North America with its International franchise covering South and Latin America. Eurosport holds the rights to broadcast the tournament in Europe. In Asia broadcasts were covered by ESPN Star Sports and in Japan by Wowow and by CN Sports Interactive Media Group in China. In Africa coverage is by SuperSport, and in the middle east by Abu Dhabi TV. Pacific coverage was broadcast by Sky New Zealand in New Zealand and by FIJI TV in Fiji. During the course of the tournament, Tennis Australia and Eurosport, announced that they had extended their partnership for another five years, which extends Eurosports unbroken coverage of the Australian Open to over twenty years. For the first time in the history of the Australian Open, the qualifying competition for the main draw was streamed live on the internet. Camera's covered courts number three, five, six and seven, as the competition was streamed live on australianopen.com, foxsports.com.au, yahoo7.com, livestream.com and on the Australian Open's Facebook page. The qualifying competition was broadcast between 12 and 15 January. The charity event Rally for Relief was also broadcast live on australianopen.com and Australian network channel seven. 1.36 million people tuned in for the Men's singles final which was lower than the rating which the women's final received according to figures released by OzTAM. Attendance 2011 introduced a kids tennis day event, which took place on the Saturday before the tournament took place, the final day of qualifying (But due to play being washed out Sunday was the final day of qualifying). Around eight thousand fans attended the day, as fans entertained themselves in a variety of activities, including watching stringers string racquets and arts and crafts. But the highlight of the day for many fans was a chance to watch past and present players on show court three. These players included, Pat Cash, Henri Leconte, Peter Luczak, Alicia Molik and Anastasia Rodionova. A full house of 15,000 people watched the charity fund-raiser Rally for Relief on the Rod Laver Arena, while another twelve hundred watched in the grounds bringing the attendance for the day to 16,220. The middle Saturday witnessed a record-breaking crowd. As 51,276 filled Melbourne Park, which was a record for the middle Saturday and the biggest crowd ever at the Australian Open for a day session. A further 25,845 attended the evening session which brought the total number of patrons for the day to 77,121 which was again record breaking as it was the largest number of spectators to have attended on one day. ==Players==

Professional players Singles seeds The men's and women's singles draw of the 2011 Australian Open seeded the top thirty-two players who were not injured. The seeds were set on the ranking system's that the Association of Tennis Professionals and the Women's Tennis Association use; so the top thirty-two players seeded were the top thirty-two players according to their rankings. Men's singles was the number one seed in the Men's Singles. He had an opportunity to complete all four Grand Slams at once, but lost to David Ferrer in the quarterfinals. Withdrawn players Women's singles was the number one seed in the Women's Singles. She lost to eventual runner-up Li Na in the semifinals. † The player retired from professional tennis and requested to be removed from the WTA rankings at the end of the tournament. Withdrawn players The following players would have been seeded, but withdrew before the tournament began. Main draw wildcard entries Tennis Australia awarded eight wildcards for the men's and women's professional singles competitions. Former Australian Grand Slam champions, Pat Rafter and Todd Woodbridge helped to select the four discretionary wildcards in the men's draw. In an agreement with the United States Tennis Association, Tennis Australia gave one man and one woman from the United States a wildcard into the Australian Open. Tennis Australia also has a similar agreement with the French Tennis Federation. The Australian Open is promoted as "the Grand Slam of Asia/Pacific"; one male and one female player from this geographical area was awarded a wildcard. The final wildcard was awarded to the winner of the Australian Open wildcard playoff, a tournament between Australian players, who do not receive direct entry into the draw. Below is a list of players and teams who received wildcard entries into the main draw. Men's singles wildcard entries • Carsten Ball • Somdev Devvarman • Matthew Ebden • Ryan Harrison • Peter Luczak • Marinko Matosevic • Benoît Paire • Bernard Tomic • Alicia Molik Men's doubles wildcard entries • Carsten Ball / Chris Guccione • James Duckworth / Benjamin Mitchell On the second day of qualifying, the entire schedule was washed out by rain. This was the first time since the Australian Open moved to Melbourne Park from Kooyong in 1988 that play has failed to take place on at least one court. Below is a list of qualifiers for the main draw of the men's and women's singles events. Men's singles qualifiers entries • Flavio Cipolla • Marco Crugnola • Frank Dancevic • Grigor Dimitrov • Denis Gremelmayr • Jan Hernych • Blaž Kavčič • Nicolas Mahut • Vincent Millot • Gilles Müller • Milos Raonic • Donald Young • Grega Žemlja The following players received entry from a lucky loser spot: • Simon Greul Women's singles qualifiers entries • Irina Falconi • Anne Kremer • Vesna Manasieva • Petra Martić • Sania Mirza • Arina Rodionova • Arantxa Rus • Lesia Tsurenko • CoCo Vandeweghe • Kathrin Wörle Withdrawals The following players were accepted directly into the main tournament, but withdrew with injuries. Men's singles Women's singles Juniors Below is a list of the sixteen seeds for the boys and girls singles and the eight qualifiers for each event. Singles seeds Boys' singles Girls' singles Qualifier entries Qualifying for the junior events took place between 20 and 21 January 2011 at the Pakenham Regional Tennis Centre. Boys' singles qualifiers entries • Axel Álvarez Llamas • Darius Florin Brăguși • Jaden Grinter • Thanasi Kokkinakis • Oriol Roca Batalla • Bruno Sant'Anna • Mac Styslinger • Thomas Szewczyk Girls' singles qualifiers entries • Nigina Abduraimova • Mana Ayukawa • Teiwa Casey • Azra Hadzic • Abbie Myers • Riko Sawayanagi • Kanami Tsuji • Natallia Vavulina Wheelchair tennis Below is a list of the seeds for the singles tournaments of the wheelchair tennis event. Singles seeds Men's singles Women's singles Quad singles ==References==