US Open: Why is it so difficult to win a second grand slam?
The Australian Open is the most prestigious international tennis tournament in the world. But the only thing that makes it seem more special is the fact that only the top seeds can win, and only the top seeds can win a second time. It’s an incredibly difficult challenge, and one that only a handful of players are able to deal with. Why is it so difficult? Read on to find out.
The Australian Open is the most prestigious international tennis tournament in the world. But the only thing that makes it seem more special is the fact that only the top seeds can win, and only the top seeds can win two grand slams.
It’s an incredibly difficult challenge, and one that only a handful of players are able to deal with.
Why is it so difficult?
You’d be forgiven for assuming that it’s all about the draw, but there are plenty of reasons why it’s so difficult to win the Australian Open.
It’s a huge tournament
The men’s winner has won at least one final at each of the last 12 Grand Slams. Only Nadal, Djokovic and Murray can lay claim to a win at all four majors, while only Djokovic has reached the women’s final at all three majors.
If you want to find a better measure of the difficulty of winning the Australian Open, it’s the ATP World Tour Finals. You need to win three or more of seven tournaments – all five of the ATP World Tour Finals come into play here – and then you need to come first or second at all four Grand Slams. Now, it’s one of the easier Grand Slams in terms of playing points, and it takes a long time to get there.
The Australian Open is a huge tournament.
But winning it is difficult
In the last 20 years at the Australian Open, three players have managed to win a second time after their first-round losses at the tournament: