• Thursday, March 28, 2024

Sport

Djokovic vs Tsitsipas least viewed Australian Open 2023 men’s final in US in 10 years

Novak Djokovic of Serbia poses with the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup alongside Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece after the Men’s Singles Final match during day 14 of the 2023 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on January 29, 2023 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Lintao Zhang/Getty Images)

By: Shubham Ghosh

Novak Djokovic created history at the recently concluded Australian Open but it seems his feat was not enough to pull viewers in the US.

It has been revealed that the Serb’s final match against Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas had the lowest viewership for a men’s Australian Open final in the US in the last decade.

Sports journalist James Gray shared ESPN TV ratings of the title round which showed that the match was the least viewed men’s final at the Melbourne Major in 10 years.

The final was seen by 439,000 viewers, which was 36 per cent less than last year’s final which was played between Rafael Nadal and Daniil Medvedev. It was viewed by 689,000 people.

Trying to analyse the reason for the low numbers for this year’s final, Gray said ESPM showcases tennis on their online platform and not the main channel and that could be one factor.

“A big ooft for tennis as the US TV ratings for the Australian Open final appear to show a 10-year low for the men’s final. ESPN stuck a lot of the tennis on their online platform and not main channels. Did they do it for the men’s final? If so, understandable numbers. If not…,” he said in a tweet.

One user said the vast time difference between the US and Australia could have been another reason.

“Men’s finals starts at 12:30 a.m PST and 3:30 a.m EST. After two full weeks of all night riveting tennis and another highly likely Djokovic dismantling, its no small wonder more than a few American peeps caught up on some sleep,” the tweet read.

While Gray partially agreed, but he did not see the 10-year low as a good sign.

“Yeah I agree to an extent but that’s why it’s important to compare with previous viewing figures. At least a 10-year low is bad,” he said.

The user also said that Djokovic doesn’t pull the same viewership as Roger Federer or Serena Williams, both of whom have retired, or Nadal, who saw an early exit this year.

Another user said that the short duration of the final could be another reason why less number of people saw it in the US. Had it been a longer affair, people would have watched it after waking up. But since Djokovic had a straight-set victory over his 11-year younger opponent, the game ended in the wee hours.

Djokovic won 6-3, 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-5) to bag a record 10th Australian Open crown and equalled Nadal’s feat of winning the most Grand Slam titles (22).

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