MELBOURNE, 18 January, 2026: On a hot sunny day, and a Sunday, day-one of the Australian Open (AO), Melbourne Park was a sea of people, reminding the last India-Pakistan match at the MCG, which saw record cricket lovers fill-up the iconic stadium. Melbourne Park was today, no doubt ,the largest ever day-session crowd with 73,235 coming through the gates, says AO’s Lee Goodall.
Yes, it was, and, I felt it the very moment, I joined the queue with my friend Siddarth to board a tram from Flinders Street, to the Melbourne Park. From the tram stand the tail end of the queue was almost near the steps of the station. The rather crowded short journey to the AO’s iconic venue, ended with the spectacle of thousands moving regulated and slowly towards the entry gate. I always thought Australians were more Footy and Cricket lovers. But here it was all Tennis. Luckily, we had a different smooth entry, that made things cosy for us.
The lunch at the high profile, exclusive, Club 1905 was world-class, that made our walk steady through the sea of humanity to see the Men’s Singles, where third-seed Alexander Zverev (Germany) won against Gabriel Diallo (Canada) 6-7(1) 6-1 6-4 6-2, moving into the second round. The more than two-hours sensational match saw early Zverev crossing early upsets and finally overcoming.
“He’s somebody that’s very young, very talented, unbelievably aggressive, so [it was] difficult to find a rhythm” said Alexander Zverev of Gabriel Diallo, and “The first set wasn’t my best tennis, I would say, but then afterwards when I got into the match, I felt really good on the court and I’m definitely happy with the level.” (AO, Gill Tan).
As we came out in the open the crowd had further surged, but everyone seemed enjoying, dining, clicking photos, enchanting aboriginal art, glittering AO boards, T-shirts on sale, corporate-commercial stalls, and the many cafes.
A big board announced – AO has zero tolerance for anti-social behaviour, racism, homophobia, sexism, and transphobia be reported at a designated number. Massively big information pillars were a great help. All the seven venues were full and the scorching 28 temperature did not seem to bother the thousands present. I suspect, till 1 February, Melbourne’s love with AO will remain what I saw today.
When you go to the AO, check Transport Victoria’s ‘Getting to the Australian Open’ big sticker information at the tram stand. They also have their staff to help you. A good job done by the transport department.
A timely tram took us back to the Flinders Street station amid the Summer of Tennis and finally to home.
I feel, AO is not just Tennis. It is our sport laced with entertainment, and an escape from a world in turmoil.
