After Djokovic's visa was revoked, Nadal made it clear that "the tournament is more important than the player", "even players like Roger, Novak, myself, Bjør Borg, tennis will develop without them." Players always finish playing and then leave, and then new players appear. If Djokovic can play at this year's Australian Open, that's a great thing. But if he can't play, the Australian Open will be a wonderful Australian Open, with or without his presence. ”
Some fans commented that Nadal's words were in line with his usual humble and low-key personality, but some fans believed that Nadal's views could only be regarded as "political correctness".
How to look at the relationship between players and the game, different people have different views. In a sense, the relationship between players and the competition is mutual achievement, in this relationship, who is lighter and who is heavier, who is dominant and who is in a subordinate position, it is really not clear in one or two sentences.
For the Australian Open, of course, they expect Deyo to participate, after all, the world's first is the biggest traffic and box office guarantee, and Deyo's participation in the Australian Open will definitely sell more tickets.
Last year, the Australian Open lost $100 million ($71 million). In order to host the tournament this year, the Australian Tennis Association took out 80 million Australian dollars of family funds, and borrowed 40 million Australian dollars from the bank, ready to achieve a turnaround. In order to allow Deyo to participate, the director of the tournament, Terley, has deliberately introduced a vaccine exemption procedure, which is certainly due to economic considerations.
Djokovic also needs to play at the Australian Open, after all, he has won nine titles in Melbourne, and taking one more can raise the number of titles to double digits, and will surpass Federer and Nadal with 21 Grand Slams. However, Deyo had his own considerations, and he was always reluctant to get vaccinated. After the Australian Open launched a vaccine exemption procedure, the two sides quickly hit it off.
Unexpectedly, the elaborate planning of both sides was messed up by the Federal Migration Service. In the Deyo visa case, the Australian Open considers economic interests, the Djokovic considers career achievement, and the federal government considers politics and votes. Some say that in this complex struggle, Deyo became the only victim.
The question is, is there no loss at the Australian Open? A British company called Search Intelligence released a report saying that after Deyo was ruled by a federal court, the number of online searches for Australian Open ticket refunds was 25% higher than that of ticket purchases.
Something similar happened in China. In the quarterfinals of the 2019 Shanghai Masters, Federer lost to Zverev and did not qualify for the final four, the Swiss king's exit directly affected the attendance rate behind him, and some scalpers who sold tickets made extreme moves, not only openly burning tickets that could not be sold, but also loudly insulting Federer.
Therefore, deportation from Djokovic this year will certainly have a significant impact on the box office revenue of the Australian Open. Coupled with the recent surge in the number of COVID-19 infections in Melbourne, the government stipulates that the attendance rate of the Australian Open must be controlled within 50%. The two factors are superimposed, and it is expected that the Australian Open will face losses again this year.
In the absence of Deyo out and Federer and Serena, no one expected that the most important person driving the Australian Open box office had actually become Kyrgios.
ESPN commented yesterday that as long as Kyrgios is still in the signing form, the Australian Open can attract a lot of fans to Melbourne Park. Kyrgios has fallen to 115th in the world rankings. Under normal circumstances, such a ranked player game is difficult to attract the attention of fans, but Kyrgios games can always attract many fans to buy tickets to watch, especially in Australia.
Not only in Australia, but also in the world, Kyrgios has a high degree of attention, which is in stark contrast to his professional achievements, character and social evaluation. Last year, the Laver Cup invited Kyrgios to compete for a high appearance fee. For the sake of popularity and box office, rodravol Cup has to rub the heat of Kyrgios.
Yesterday afternoon, Kyrgios played against British player Browdy in the first round, and the very performance-oriented Kyrgios wore a basketball suit. During the match, he kicked the tennis ball into the stands and performed a hand-down and crotch-down shot, once again provoking cheers from the audience with a series of juggling-like movements. After winning the game, Kyrgios imitated Ronaldo's celebratory gestures and took a generous sip of beer in front of the fans.
When asked by a reporter after the game about his relationship with Djokovic, Kyrgios joked: "I am now like a brother with him and I want to invite him to play doubles together." Previously, Kyrgios had been very unkind to Djokovic and had made many offensive comments. Before and after Djokovic was cancelled, Kyrgios unusually spoke out in high-profile support for Djokovic. I have to say that on the off-field topic, on attracting fans, Kyrgios does have a set of unique skills.
Tomorrow, Kyrgios will play against Medvedev in the second round, and I don't know what tricks Kyrgios will play again. Regardless of win or loss, it will be the highest attendance since the start of the Australian Open.
Deyo missed the Australian Open due to visa problems, which is like a magic blockbuster in the New Year. After that, who would have thought that it was Kyrgios who saved the Australian Open box office? (Source: Tennis House Author: Yun Cirrus Yunshu)
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