AO Press Release, December 6, 2019

The Australian Open 2020 Play-off will begin next week, with the nation’s top emerging players competing to earn a prized Australian Open 2020 wildcard into the first Grand Slam of the year.

The tournament, part of the December Showdown presented by Kia, will run from Monday 9 to Sunday 15 December and feature 16 men and 16 women.

World No.128 Maddison Inglis (WA) will lead the women’s field, with South Australia’s Alex Bolt [160] leading the men’s field. The full field for both draws are available below.

Men’s singles action will take place on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and women’s singles matches will be played on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. The finals for both men’s and women’s singles will take place on Sunday.

An Australian Open women’s doubles wildcard is also up for grabs, with competition running from Monday 9 to Friday 13 December.

“The AO Play-off is a great opportunity for our players who don’t have direct entry into the Australian Open to compete and earn their place in the main draw,” Australian Open Tournament Director Craig Tiley said.

“Winning this event, and going on to play at the Australian Open, really sets a player up for a successful year, both in terms of prize money and confidence. Some of our recent past winners include current stars Ash Barty and Alex de Minaur, and I know all the players will hope to emulate their success.

“So many of our emerging players have achieved terrific results on the Pro Tour this year, and I’m looking forward to seeing them in action here at Melbourne Park at what is the beginning of our summer of tennis.” 

Tennis Australia this year teamed up with Universal Tennis Rating (UTR) to give players from around Australia the chance to play their way into the main draw of the Australian Open with the all new Australian Open 2020 UTR Wildcard Play-off.

“I’m delighted we’re including players who’ve activated their Universal Tennis Ranking (UTR) to compete for a spot in the Australian Open Wildcard Play-off,” Tiley said. 

Today four players from the New South Wales UTR tournament, and the Queensland UTR tournament competed in the first round of the UTR Finals at Melbourne Park Universal Tennis Ratings. 

The two winners will then play against two players who have been awarded wildcards by the Tennis Australia National Selectors tomorrow. The male and female winner of these matches will earn a place in Monday’s AO 2020 Play-off.

For more information on UTR visit myutr.com.

The Australian Open 2020 Play-off draw will take place at Tennis HQ from 1.00 pm on Sunday 8 December.

Australian Open 2020 Play-off field