Australian Open forced to make changes after fans queue for hours on opening day

The Australian Open was forced to put more staff on the gates at Melbourne Park on Monday to cope with demand after a record-breaking attendance on the first day of the main draw.

The 73,235 people who scanned in on Sunday exceeded the 68,883 who attended the middle Saturday of the 2019 Australian Open.

However, patrons had to put up with long queues at the security entry points and to access courts. Fans again waited in long queues on Monday morning, which had disappeared by lunchtime thanks to an increased deployment of staff – although moving around the precinct remained slow.

A Tennis Australia spokesperson said it was a “big crowd” on day one, and fans should take precautions to ensure they can enjoy their day. “We encourage fans to plan ahead for their day at the AO by booking in advance, and ensuring tickets are downloaded before arriving at the entry point,” they said.

Tournament organisers have invested in developing the northern and western parts of the precinct – between the tennis courts and the Melbourne CBD – in recent years, in an effort to build capacity, provide more space and offer a greater variety of activities and attractions.

These efforts have made it possible to squeeze in a record crowd this year, even though the site is not radically different from 2025.

The courtside bar next to court six is newly expanded and connected on a second story to elevated viewing stands between courts five and seven. Those areas have been at capacity for much of the first two days, even though they are standing only, forcing those wanting to experience the new viewpoint into one-in, one-out queueing.

Those waiting have been given some respite on a day where temperatures have reached 30C in Melbourne by a new shade structure nearby which provides seats and a large screen.

Organisers had to pause the sale of ground passes on Sunday to ensure the site was not overcapacity.

Tennis fans spill into all corners of Melbourne Park as the tournament gets under way. Photograph: Morgan Hancock/Getty Images

“There was no question that there were more people coming on the grounds than even we expected,” TA chief executive, Craig Tiley, told Channel Nine on Monday, confirming they had put more staff to process fans on gates to avoid the queues of the previous day.

“This [level of interest] was normally a middle weekend for us, and it’s unusual that it was the first day for us.”

Melbourne Park, the body which manages the precinct, will shortly unveil its vision for the next phase of development, five years after the completion of the most recent, $1bn site redevelopment.

Last week, Tiley raised the idea of sinking courts below ground, to allow patrons to wander around the top of stands, similar to Kia Arena, 1573 Arena and the new second tiers adjacent to the courtside bar.

He believes this would allow patrons to more easily catch the action on outside courts, which have limited capacity, without having to queue for access and formally enter each arena.

Storm Hunter, who won her first round match inside a packed Kia Arena on Monday, said it was “unbelievable” the tournament cracked the 100,000 mark.

“It’s crazy how much this event has changed and how big it’s gotten, and I don’t know what the records are going to be today, but as an Australian player, I’m very proud of what the Australian Open’s done.”