The 2023 Australian Open runs from Sunday, January 15th through Sunday January 29th. Cord-cutters don’t need to worry about missing any of the action since the entire event is aired on standard channels provided by the major streaming services.
In a hurry? The Australian Open will be shown on ESPN, ESPN2, and The Tennis Channel. Here are our favorite streaming services that allow you to watch most if not all of the action:
- Fubo: The best streaming service for international sports also provides 150+ well-selected channels. Fubo allows you to try out its service with a free trial.
- DIRECTV STREAM: Get a great channel lineup with the best selection of RSNs in the industry. A 5-day free trial is now available for DIRECTV STREAM.
- Sling TV: This low-cost service allows you to select just the channel lineup you want. Save 50% on your first month of Sling TV.
If you can’t watch your favorite sports because of your location, get ExpressVPN to access the content you deserve.
Table Of Contents
The Australian Open is the first major tennis tournament of the calendar year, and it takes place at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. It is generally considered to be the most important sporting event in the country. It attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors each year. In 2022 each tournament had a purse of AUD $1.7m, and the winner of each tournament got AUD $270,000.
Australian Open Background
This tournament was first played in 1905. It was originally referred to as the Australasian Championships. In 1924, it earned its designation as a major tournament by the International Lawn Tennis Federation (ILTF). The ILTF is now known as Tennis Australia, and it is responsible for organizing and running the Australian Open each year.
In 1927, it was renamed the Australian Championships. It wasn’t until 1969 that it got its current name.
Venue
In 1972, it was decided that the tournament would be held in Melbourne each year. Between 1905 and 1971, the event had a number of host cities including Sydney, Brisbane, and Perth.
The event was also held in New Zealand in 1906 and 1912. One of the key reasons why the location of the Australian Open changed so frequently was because it was difficult to travel long distances during the first half of the 20th century.
Therefore, holding the tournament throughout the country was seen as a way to make the event more accessible to a larger number of players. But Australia’s relatively remote location meant that it drew few international participants from outside of Asia until the 1950s.
Between 1972 and 1987, the tournament was played at the Kooyong Tennis Club. In 1988, the event finally moved to Melbourne Park where it has been held ever since. Unlike other venues that host Grand Slam tennis events, this complex has a retractable roof and other tools to ensure that matches can be held in relative comfort.
Surfaces
Until 1988, the tournament was contested on a grass surface. However, since the move to Melbourne Park, players have competed on a variety of artificial surfaces that are designed to mimic the look and feel of grass.
One of the key advantages to using an artificial surface is that it is made from materials that do a better job of repelling heat. This is important because January is the peak of the summer season in Melbourne. This means that players have to deal with extreme levels of heat and humidity.
Recent Results
Although Novak Djokovic had won the event each of the previous three years on the men’s side, after he was excluded from the country due to his COVID-19 vaccination status. Rafael Nadal won the tournament (his second) in an exciting 5 set match against Daniil Medvedev
Rod Laver, Arthur Ashe, and Roger Federer are among the biggest names to win the men’s tournament since 1969.
On the women’s side, defending champion Naomi Osaka lost in the third round. Australian Ashleigh Barty won the tournament (only her third major) in straight sets over American Danielle Collins.
Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova, and Margaret Court are among the notable names to win the women’s version of the tournament.
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Where to Watch the Australian Open
In the United States, you can watch the Australian Open on national TV channels ESPN, ESPN2, and the Tennis Channel. But the final matches are normally on ESPN.
If you are interested in particular players, you should get access to ESPN+, which should provide streams of every court.
In Australia itself, the event is covered by Nine Network. Sky broadcasts it in New Zealand. TSN (English) and RDS (French) bring the event to Canada. beIN Sports covers most of the Middle East.
Eurosport broadcasts it to the UK and most of Europe and Africa. (Note: last year, Amazon Prime Video was providing the event as well. Although it continues to stream tennis including ATP and WTA, it will not be broadcasting any Grand Slam tournaments.)
NHK airs it in Japan. Sony 6 has broadcasting rights in India, Pakistan, and nearby countries. Most of Asia other than China is covered by Fox Sports Asia. China is covered by a number of different providers including CCTV and Fox Sports Asia (in hotels). The rest of the world is covered mostly by ESPN International.
2023 Australian Open Schedule
Here is the schedule for the men’s and women’s singles at the 2023 tournament. All times are in EST.
- Sun Jan 15 : First Round
- Mon Jan 16 : First Round
- Tue Jan 17 : Second Round
- Wed Jan 18 : Second Round
- Thu Jan 19 : Third Round
- Fri Jan 20 : Third Round
- Sat Jan 21 : Round of 16
- Sun Jan 22 : Round of 16
- Mon Jan 23 TBD: Quarterfinals
- Tue Jan 24 TBD: Quarterfinals
- Wed Jan 25 TBD: Women’s Semifinals
- Thu Jan 26 TBD: Men’s Semifinals
- Fri Jan 27 TBD: Women’s Singles Finals
- Sat Jan 28 TBD: Men’s Singles Finals.
In addition to this, there are matches in the following areas:
- Men’s Doubles
- Women’s Doubles
- Mixed Doubles
- Wheelchair Men’s Singles
- Wheelchair Women’s Singles
- Wheelchair Quad Singles
- Wheelchair Men’s Doubles
- Wheelchair Women’s Doubles
- Wheelchair Quad Doubles
- Boys’ Singles
- Girls’ Singles
- Boys’ Doubles
- Girls’ Doubles
Live TV Stream Services
In the US, you have many good options for streaming the Australian Open live.
FuboTV
For $74.99/mo, FuboTV gives you access to ESPN and ESPN2. The Tennis Channel is available as part of the Fubo Extra ($7.99/mo) or Sports Extra ($10.99/mo). The base plan comes with over 100 channels. With Fubo Extra, the number jumps to over 150.
All FuboTV plans come with 1000 hours of cloud DVR and streaming on up to ten devices at once. For more information, see our complete FuboTV review.
Sling TV
ESPN and ESPN are part of the Sling Orange base service plan, which is $40.00/mo. You’ll also be able to get the Tennis Channel as part of the Sling Orange Sports Extra plan, which is $11/mo. This gives you 45+ channels including MLB Network, NBA TV, and NHL Network.
One downside of Sling Orange is that you can stream on only one device at a time. But that isn’t a big deal for a lot of people. And the plan does come with 50 hours of cloud DVR. There’s more information in our Australian Open guide and general Sling TV review.
Hulu + Live TV
Hulu + Live TV costs $76.99/mo and comes with the entire family of ESPN networks in addition to ESPN+ and Disney+. It does not offer Tennis Channel, but ESPN+ should more than cover for this.
Still, it allows you to watch the most important matches of the Open as well as a wide variety of professional football, basketball, and other events throughout the year.
All Hulu + Live TV plans come with unlimited cloud DVR and simultaneous streaming on up to two devices. See our Hulu + Live TV review for more.
Other Streaming Options
Both YouTube TV and Vidgo offer the ESPN channels but neither offers Tennis.
The base DIRECTV STREAM plan ($79.99/mo) comes with ESPN and ESPN2. The Tennis Channel comes with the Choice package for $108.99/mo. But you do get a lot more than that including access to the best selection of regional sports networks (RSNs) in the industry.
TVs and Devices to Watch the Australian Open Live Stream
All the services we discussed above support most of streaming devices you are likely to have: Amazon Fire TV, Android mobile, Android TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, iOS (eg, iPhone), VIZIO and LG smart TVs, Roku, Samsung smart TVs, Xbox systems, and web browsers.
Nintendo Switch and PlayStation systems are supported by Hulu. Sling TV supports the Oculus VR system.
There are other less popular streaming devices that are also supported. Check our reviews for complete details.
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Summing Up
One of the most anticipated sporting events of the year, the Australian Open takes place during the final two weeks of January. Live coverage of the event is available throughout the globe, but if you live in the United States, you’ll likely watch it on ESPN, ESPN2, and The Tennis Channel.
Many streaming platforms offer these networks, which means that you can keep tabs on your favorite athletes without the need for a cable subscription. Our top picks are Sling TV and FuboTV.
How to Watch Live Tennis Without Cable
See the following guides for more information:
- General guide
- Australian Open
- French Open (on Sling TV)
- Madrid Open
- US Open (on Sling TV)
- Wimbledon (The Championships) (on Sling TV — Finals).
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