When is Australian Open 2024? Draw, start time and full schedule for tennis’ Grand Slam curtain raiser Down Under

TENNIS fans are gearing up for the 2024 Australian Open – and Novak Djokovic will be hoping to break another record Down Under.

The Serbian superstar beat Stefanos Tsitsipas by straight sets to secure the 2023 title.

And it means that Djokovic is one Grand Slam away from snatching the all-time record from Aussie legend Margaret Court who achieved 24 triumphs during her time.

However, British mogul Andy Murray could have something to say about that as the Scotsman has revealed that he is ‘pumped’ to get back on the court after several retirement rumours.

Elsewhere, tennis lovers are looking forward to the return of Japanese star, Naomi Osaka, American idol Coco Gauff and US open champion Emma Radacanu.

But they will have some work to do if they are to knock Aryna Sabalenka off her throne following a thrilling 2023 final win against Elena Raybakina.

When is the Australian Open 2024?

The 2024 Australian Open is set to officially get underway on Sunday, January 14 before concluding on Sunday, January 28.

However, qualifying will start on Monday, January 8, and end on Thursday, January 11.

Play is expected to start at midnight GMT / 7pm ET each day, but the night sessions in Melbourne will get underway at 8am GMT / 3am ET.

When is the Australian Open 2024 draw?

The date for the 2024 Australian Open is yet to be confirmed but it is likely to be held on Thursday, January 11 – after the conclusion of qualifying.

What TV channel is it on and can it be live streamed?

Australian Open 2024 will be broadcast LIVE on Eurosport in the UK while fans in the US can catch all the action on ESPN.

For online access, tennis lovers can head to discovery+ which will have of all the matches on show via their website.

Alternatively, SunSport will have set-by-set coverage of several games throughout the iconic competition.

What is the full schedule?

Here is the full schedule for the Australian Open 2024:

• Monday, January 8 – Thursday, January 11: Qualifying
• Sunday, January 14: Men’s and women’s first round singles
• Monday, January 15: Men’s and women’s first round singles
• Tuesday, January 16: Men’s and women’s first round singles
• Wednesday, January 17: Men’s and women’s second round singles
• Thursday, January 18: Men’s and women’s second round singles
• Friday, January 19: Men’s and women’s third round singles
• Saturday, January 20: Men’s and women’s third round singles
• Sunday, January 21: Men’s and women’s fourth round singles
• Monday, January 22: Men’s and women’s fourth round singles
• Tuesday, January 23: Men’s and women’s singles quarter-finals
• Wednesday, January 24: Men’s and women’s singles quarter-finals
• Thursday, January 25: Women’s singles semi-finals
• Friday, January 26: Men’s singles semi-finals
• Saturday, January 27: Women’s singles final, men’s doubles final
• Sunday, January 28: Men’s singles final, women’s doubles final

What changes have been made this year?

The new changes will see MORE points handed out at the Grand Slams and ATP Tour tournaments.

Winners will continue to receive 2,000 at majors then 1,000, 500 and 250 respectively at the different levels.

However, the points handed out to those who go out earlier on are going up.

There are also minor increases throughout each of the other rounds at the majors, except for first-round losses.

Semi-finalists will now get 800 rather than 720 while it is 400 for the quarter-finals, 40 more than before.

Similarly, those who lose in Masters 1000 finals will get 650, up 50 points from 2023.

What has been said?

American superstar Taylor Fritz, though, believes a new system to create a more concentrated main tour, drawing inspiration from golf, could be the best solution for tennis.

He said: “If you’re on the main, top tour, you should be set to play 14 marquee events, and they should all be slightly bigger-draw events to get basically everybody in the top 100 in, and that’s honestly all we should play.”