Returning from half a year of rest after injuring his knee (from drawing a bath for his kids, of all things!), he has played well and with resilience to reach the final of the 2017 Australian Open. He is 35 years old and is is in a sport where players in their 20's are considered to be in their prime.
We saw him practice in one of the outer courts while at the Australian Open last Sunday. There was a large crowd around the court, and on the bridge overlooking the court. Everyone was trying to see him, gawk at him, take pictures of him, admire his moves, so much so that neither of us could get a spot to catch a glimpse of him for the longest time.
We almost did not make it to any of the courts to watch any players play. Although we went to the Australian Open, we caught very little tennis action. Who wants to sit down quietly in cramped, hard chairs watching a tennis match when there are so many other interesting things to do outside of the courts!
Here are some interesting places we visited at the AO:
1. Woolworths tent - The Susmmer Sensorium is on! Visitors have to pre-book their spaces (limited to something like 30 people per session). Once ushered in and seated, we were each given a cold towel which was wonderful in the heat! In the fully enclosed tent in the shape of a dome, a multimedia presentation is projected onto the ceiling of the dome. The presentation showcased the natural produce from throughout Australia and as one watches, servers placed tasting boards with those ingredients in front of us.
We had small bite sizes of entree, main and a dessert course, paired with fresh juice. It was quite an interesting experience - who would have thought that one could get a serviced dining experience in the AO?
2. Blackmores tent - Each person gets a turn at one of the 6 machines that asks which areas of health are you concerned. The answers are in a multiple choice format with choices like hydration, etc. After typing in your email address and depending on the answer chosen, a sample sachet of Blackmores' superfood powder is dispensed from the machine. If you thought there was no opportunity to try the other flavours besides the one you chose, not to worry because the other flavours are sprinkled over yoghurt, on breakfast mix, in a juice to be sampled by everyone. Flavours include wild blueberry, coconut, cacao, supergreens I think the powders are packed with nutrients and great for people on the run but I found most of it bitter so I would rather have the original stuff.
3. ANZ tent - There was a looong wait for this tent, and two queues - one for the ANZ hand held battery operated fan and another to play an interactive tennis game similar to the Wii. The game is a hit with the kids (keyword here is kids... not adults not moi). You could get a video of yourself playing the game, and a picture of yourself striking a winning pose at the end of the game sent to your email if you don't mind giving them your email address.
4. Jacob's Creek - A very pretty looking display of pink roses provides plenty of photo opportunities for the girls. They also serve froze, like a wine granita. And give out rose macarons which were yum.
5. DMA concert - awesome live band playing in the background, us sitting on the grass with a cold drink... just wonderful!
There were different 'quarters' such as English quarter with white garden seats and swings, Paris quarter with a model of the Eiffel Tower, US quarter which gave the grounds a community feel and proides plenty of photo opportunities to remember the AO.
With all those attractions on the grounds, it seems like the tennis has become a secondary attraction in the AO!
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