This year’s tennis season has kicked off with the Grand Slam in Australia.
Last year, the winner of the men’s singles title was Novak Djokovic, while the women’s championship was won by Aryna Sabalenka. Both are set to defend their titles this year, but it will be a challenging fight.
Djokovic has already won the Australian Open 10 times in his career and is the clear favourite of the tournament. However, Italian-born Jannik Sinner also has a big appetite for victory.
Sabalenko’s prominent opponent will be Chinese player Qinwen Zheng, whom she will face in the tournament’s final.
When is the Australian Open this year?
The Australian Open began on Sunday 14 January and ends on Sunday 28 January.
How to watch the Australian Open on TV or online in the UK
In the UK the tournament will be streamed live on Eurosport, which is available through Sky, BT, and Virgin Media.
If you’d rather watch from a computer or phone you can do that through Discovery+, which costs £6.99 per month or £30.99 per year for a package that includes sports. Sky TV customers can watch the tournament for free, as the Entertainment & Sport pass is included in packages.
If you already subscribe to Amazon Prime then you might prefer to just watch through that. You can add Eurosport to your Prime account, which normally costs £6.99 per month, and then watch through your TV, laptop, phone, or tablet.
How to watch the Australian Open on TV or online from the US
If you’re in the US you can watch on ESPN.
This may already be included in your cable package, but if not you can access it through online service Sling. ESPN is included in the service’s Orange plan – so it would cost $40 per month, though the first month is reduced to $20.
You can also get ESPN+ for $10.99 monthly, or as part of a bundle with Disney+ and Hulu, for $14.99 per month if you’re happy with ads.
Finally, the tournament will also be broadcast on The Tennis Channel, which may also be available on your cable plan, or through the
Sling sports add-on.
Watch the Australian Open for free with a VPN
If you want to watch live, you have a few options. The tournament is being broadcast on Channel 9 in Australia, which is free to watch, and livestreamed on 9Now. The only complication? You need to be in Australia to access it, and to create an account with an Australian zip code.
If you’re outside of Oz then you should be able to watch 9Now through a VPN, which will let you browse the web as if you were based in a different country.
We’ve extensively tested loads of different VPNs, and our top recommendation is NordVPN for its ease of use, privacy, and reliability – but check out our full guide to the best VPNs for more options.
Australian Open 2024 schedule
The Australian Open is spread across a 14-day period with the Men’s and Women’s singles tournaments taking place simultaneously. You can view the official schedule here, but this is the rough structure:
- First round (Men’s and Women’s singles) – 14 & 16 January
- Second round (Men’s and Women’s singles) – 17 & 18 January
- Third round (Men’s and Women’s singles) – 19 & 20 January
- Fourth round (Men’s and Women’s singles) – 21 & 22 January
- Quarter-finals (Men’s and Women’s singles) – 23 & 24 January
- Semi-finals (Men’s and Women’s singles) – 25 January
- Women’s final – 26 January
- Men’s final – 27 January