What is Australian Open?
[[File:Ausopen margaret court arena medium.jpg|thumb|Two players on an outdoor court]] The '''Australian Open''' is one of the four [[Grand Slam (tennis)|Grand Slam]] [[tennis]] tournaments. It is the first one of the year. It is played in [[Melbourne]], [[Australia]]. The Australian Open has been played on three different surfaces: *[[Grass]] (1905–1987) *[[Rebound Ace]] (a type of hard court, 1988–2007) *[[Plexicushion]] (a faster type of hard court, (2008–present) Before 1983, many of the best tennis players did not play at the tournament. This was because the Australian Open was far away from Europe and North America and was not considered as important as the other Grand Slam tournaments. ==Heat policy== The tournament is played in [[January]], during the Australian [[summer]]. In 1998 an extreme heat rule was brought in.<ref name=aot>{{cite web |url=http://australian.open-tennis.com/weather.php |title=Australian Open Weather / Extreme Heat Policy &#124; Australian Open |work=australian.open-tennis.com |year=2011 |access-date=31 January 2011 |archive-date=2 July 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120702085159/http://australian.open-tennis.com/weather.php |url-status=dead }}</ref> It is the only major tournament that has a heat policy.<ref name=abcheat/> If the temperature gets higher than 35 degrees (C) matches may have to be stopped for a short time, because players feel [[Dehydration|dehydrated]]. Matches on the outside courts are stopped. The roof over the main stadium courts can be closed, and cooling systems turned on.<ref name=abcheat>{{cite web |url= http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/01/28/2475899.htm |title=Extreme heat policy likely at Australian Open - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) |work=abc.net.au |date=Jan 28, 2009 |access-date=31 January 2011}}</ref> In 2007 the temperature on the courts reached 50 degrees Celsius.<ref name=aot/> ==Winners== *2023 [[Novak Djokovic]] and [[Aryna Sabalenka]] *2022 [[Rafael Nadal]] and [[Ashleigh Barty]] *2021 [[Novak Djokovi