Unable to make it to the Australian Open this year, I opted to attend the Workday Canberra International 2025 finals on Saturday instead.
Tennis ACT chief executive officer Mark La Brooy said the tournament had record ticket sales with 15,950 people through the gates from 29 December to 4 January, from the ACT, NSW and further afield.
The Workday Canberra International brings in $2 million to the Canberra economy.
It was a lovely, sunny day with the mild stormy weather staying away from the Canberra Tennis Centre in Lyneham until after the tournament finished.
With the AO on-court experience being so expensive – thousands of dollars – I decided to go for Canberra’s courtside seating.
I had an allocated seat in the front row, with a few drinks, a hat and sunscreen included, and a separate toilet, as well as a private area to hang out in.
While there were several food and drink trucks on offer, I opted for the catered food add-on, which was super delicious.
A special thing I didn’t expect from the day was some of the players being brought to the VIP area to chat and take photos with fans.
Three matches took place on the day, the men’s doubles and the men’s and women’s singles.
I had never heard of any of the players, all of whom were quite young, but was impressed with the skills and strength with every hit of the tennis ball.
First up was the doubles which was between Ryan Seggerman and Eliot Spizzirri from the United States of America, who defeated Pierre Hugues Herbert from France and Jerome Kym from Switzerland 6-1, 4-1.
Next up was the women’s final between “two of Asia’s brightest stars,” Aoi Ito from Japan and Sijia Wei from China.
I was rooting for Ito, who, at times, appeared to hit the ball quite low, barely clearing the net – she won.
She had defeated Spanish player and number one seed Nuria Parrizas-Diaz in the semifinals to reach the final day of the tournament.
In the men’s, two “future stars of the game battled it out” with Brazil’s Joao Fonseca, an ATP Next Gen Champion, taking the crown against American Ethan Quinn.
Tournament director Lawrence Robertson said it was fantastic to see the Canberra community supporting the event.
“We have had the very best of tennis on show on and off the court with two very deserving singles champions,” Mr Robertson said.
“And we are delighted to witness Joao Fonseca who is a future star of our game.
“We wish all champions and players the very best for their summer of tennis.”
Two ballkids were selected from the day, one male, and one female, to continue their duties at the AO.
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