Traditionally, the Australian Open used to be staged at different venues every year, having been held at five Australian and two New Zealand cities: Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide, Brisbane, Perth, Christchurch and Hastings.
However, in 1972, the Lawn Tennis Association of Australia (now Tennis Australia) decided to stage the tournament in the same city every year, and the Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club was selected as Melbourne had regularly attracted the biggest fan turnout.
In just over a decade-and-a-half, the popularity of the Australian Open increased so much that the National Tennis Centre at Flinders Park was built in 1988 to accommodate a greater patronage. The move was an instant success as that year's tournament saw a 90% increase in attendance.
Now officially known as Melbourne Park, the venue boasts four indoor courts and 22 outdoor courts, with its showpiece stage being Rod Laver Arena, where all tournament finals are held. The stadium, which has a seating capacity of 14,820, was renamed in 2000 to honour Rod Laver, one of the greatest tennis players of all time and the only person to have achieved the Grand Slam twice.
Besides Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne Park also boasts of Hisense Arena, its second-largest court with a capacity of 10,500, and the Margaret Court Arena, formerly known as Show Court One but renamed to honour the Australian tennis great who has won more Grand Slam titles than any other player in history, male or female.
