Why Aussie tennis legend is missing from Australian Open
An Australian tennis icon has become part of the furniture at Melbourne Park, but the legend is missing from action this year.
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He’s become part of the furniture every January at the Australian Open but Rod Laver won’t be attending the grand slam this year.
Centre court at Melbourne Park was renamed Rod Laver Arena 25 years ago in honour of the Australian tennis legend.
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Laver is one of two men to achieve the calendar grand slam, winning all four majors in 1962 and 1969.
In a golden era of Australian tennis, he also won five Davis Cup titles as players like Roy Emerson, Ken Rosewall and John Newcombe dominated world tennis.
Laver has traditionally been courtside throughout the Australian Open in recent years, watching blockbuster matches from the front row in the stadium named after him.
But this year the 86-year-old has opted to stay at home in California, where he has settled after his tennis career and lives with his partner Susan Johnson.
A Tennis Australia spokesperson told news.com.au: “Rod decided not to make the long trip this year and let us know a few months ago. He’s well and watching from home”.
Laver wrote on social media: “While disappointed to miss #AO25 and interact with tennis fans in Melbourne, I will be watching from home and cheering on the players as they battle for glory.
“I hope you get to Melbourne Park to enjoy a wonderful summer of tennis!”
Laver also welcomed the news that Pat Rafter was joining Team World as vice-captain for this year’s Laver Cup, which pits the best European players against the rest of the world.
The 11-time grand slam champion also wished Alex de Minaur “all the best in his first AO quarterfinal tonight”. Laver wrote: “Go Demon!”
Laver’s absence is of course understandable. The ‘Rockhampton Rocket’ has bounced back to full health after he suffered a stroke in 1998.
He has presented the Norman Brooks Challenge Cup to the men’s singles champion in several memorable moments over the years.
Who could forget when Laver consoled Roger Federer after the Swiss maestro broke down in tears after his heartbreaking loss to Rafael Nadal in the 2010 Australian Open final.
Novak Djokovic is just two wins away from a 11th Australian Open triumph and a 25th grand slam title overall, which would rewrite the history books.
But Laver won’t be on hand to present the trophy if Djokovic surpasses Margaret Court’s tally of 24 grand slam titles to stand alone at the top of the tennis mountain as the greatest of all time.
While Laver isn’t in Melbourne this year, tennis fans were relieved to see commentator Jim Courier return to the broadcast after he missed the first few days of the Australian Open due to the Los Angeles fires.
Courier had been in Australia earlier in the summer but returned to LA to check on his home, which reportedly wasn’t impacted by the fires.
The four-time grand slam winner was back on Channel 9 last week and found himself caught in some controversy when Djokovic snubbed an on-court interview with Courier because of comments made by Nine’s Tony Jones.
“It’s so good to be back here,” Courier said.
“It’s been a challenging time in Los Angeles where I live. I know Australians are very familiar with the challenges wild fires can present. L.A. will be back.
“Things are better now. Thankfully, hopefully, it’ll stay that way. I’m ready to focus on some tennis and concentrate on that.”
Originally published as Why Aussie tennis legend is missing from Australian Open
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