A look at the diverse history of the Australian Open

For one of the biggest events on the tennis calendar to occur at such an early point in the season, one would expect the unexpected from the Australian Open. Year after year, the season's first major always delivers Down Under.

With the season just getting underway a few weeks ago, it is always a fascinating watch to see which players can get up to speed the fastest and make a run at history.

Speaking of history, in this piece, we are going to take a look at some of the memorable numbers and moments in the history of this great event.

Some numbers you should know about the history of the Australian Open

23 - The number of countries represented among all the Men's and Women's singles winners

The sheer variety of nationalities among all the past winners of this event is an eye-popping number. There is a little more diversity on the Women's side, although a lot of that can be put down to Novak Djokovic dominating this event on the men's side.

2002 1st Round - Top Seed Lleyton Hewitt goes down

Hewitt came into this event as the newly minted World No. 1 and in the form of his life. In front of his home crowd, great things were expected of him.

Sadly for Aussie fans around the world, Alberto Martin had other plans as he secured a stunning four set victory. None of the top 4 seeds on the men's side made the 3rd round this year. At least Hewitt wasn't alone, right?

123.3 - The hottest temperature, in Fahrenheit, ever recorded in Australia

This took place during the 2022 edition of the Australian Open. This is a tournament known for brutal weather conditions, and none were worse than that toasty January day.

5 - The number of different cities to have hosted the Australian Open

While we all think of Melbourne when we think of where the Aussie Open is played, it's not the only city to have had the honor of hosting this great tournament. Sydney, Adelaide, Perth and Brisbane. In the end, Melbourne was selected to be the long-term answer and it has been a resounding success.

1988 - The year the Australian Championships made the transition from grass to hard courts

This is a decision I think has paid off in the long run. However, prior to 1988, The Australian Open was played on grass courts. The stress of maintaining grass courts in the scorching heat of Australia sounds like a headache to me.

4 - The number of players to win the title in their first appearance

Andre Agassi and Monica Seles are the two big names of this illustrious group. They are joined by 1972 winner Virginia Wade and Barbara Jordan in 1979.

Is there a young upstart that has the game to make this kind of magical run? That would absolutely be the tennis story of the year.

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