Tennis pros, celebrities and amateurs: How did the Australian Open 1-point slam evolve?
On Wednesday night, a sold-out crowd filled Rod Laver Arena to watch the Australian Open’s “1-Point Slam” competition, where tennis pros including No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz and Women’s No. 2 Iga Swiatek competed against community champions and wildcards such as AFL star Bailey Smith, TV host Andy Lee and Mandarin pop star Jay Chou for a whopping $1 million.
The concept was fairly straightforward and quite brutal. Each “match” was decided by a single point. Win a point and you advance; lose it and you’re out. One misplaced step, a sloppy swing or a misjudged bounce and you could be bidding farewell to the million dollar jackpot.
A “rock, paper, scissors” contest determined who served, but this proved confusing for many players (do you shoot three or four?)
The million dollar prize was brought onto the court at the start of the slam and left in the corner. The metre-high stack of greenbacks drew gasps and then laughter from the crowd as the camera panned to reveal the face of Tennis Australia chief executive Craig Tiley.
There was an early upset in the first round after a nervous Thomas Van Harran double-faulted, allowing TV personality Karl Stefanovic to sail through.
Other celebrities, such as comedian Andy Lee, employed some sneaky mind games as they took the time to pause before serving, take off their jackets and ask for numerous balls. The psychological warfare proved successful and Lee won a point over Ashleigh Simes.
Other players preferred to interact with the crowd with favorite Nick Kyrgios running around the court before his match. Kyrgios won a point against Steve Yarwood and then immediately celebrated as if he had won Wimbledon.
“This might be the biggest match of my career,” Kyrgios joked.
Unfortunately Bailey Smith’s AFL talents didn’t show on the tennis court and the Geelong star lost out to Jordan Smith.
Over the next several rounds, tennis pros Alexander Bublik, Naomi Ósakaová, Jannik Sinner and Daniil Medvedev effortlessly fought their way through a field of celebrities and community champions.
However, the one-point do-or-die pressure affected the pros as Coco Gauff and Félix Auger-Aliassime both lost their matches.
Garland was in great form all night, beating No. 3 Alexander Zverev after a long rally.
Joanna Garland Credit: Getty Images
The 24-year-old Taiwanese player later beat Kyrgios, who responded with a comical racquet smash and smile. Garland later defeated Sakkari and Donna Vekic to advance to the finals.
In the end, the 1-Point Slam at the Australian Open was a fun evening marked by good sportsmanship, perhaps best summed up by Garland herself.
“There are three winners tonight,” Garland told the crowd before playing in the final game. “Tennis, me and him.” [Smith].
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