MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — The first official opening ceremony of the Australian Open has become the Roger Federer show on the eve of the season-opening major.
There was Crowded House, the band, who played a set of four hits. It was a full house – a full house in the 15,000-seat stadium.
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Rod Laver, the famous Australian Grand Slam player, was in the house. The 87-year-old Australian sat courtside at Rod Laver Arena, the center court at Melbourne Park named in his honour.
Federer, a six-time Australian Open winner and 20-time Grand Slam champion, teamed up with former champions Andre Agassi and then Ash Barty in a doubles exhibition match against Pat Rafter and Lleyton Hewitt as the main feature of the program.
It went to script, with Federer winning the first point despite a forehand, then emphatically finishing off the victory with a leaping overhead winner.
Novak Djokovicwho won 10 Australian titles among his record 24 major championships, was there to watch.
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The Australian Open singles main draw competitions begin Sunday. Djokovic plays his opening match on Monday.
Organizers of the Australian Open have turned the 2026 edition into a three-week tennis festival, with 217,999 fans in attendance over six days to watch exhibitions, qualifiers and matches. 1 point slam before the start of the main draw.
Federer was back in Australia for the first time since 2021, making the trip now because he retired from competitive tennis before he could go on a farewell season tour.
“It really means a lot to me when people like Rocket (Laver) show up,” Federer said. “It’s super important to be grateful” to previous generations of stars.
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