In a week that had the global tennis community holding its collective breath, the Australian Open made a definitive statement: five-set tennis is not going anywhere. The announcement, delivered through the tournament’s official social media channels on Thursday, drew a clear line in the red clay and hard courts of tennis history — one that matters deeply for Australian fans, global purists, and the future direction of Grand Slam tennis alike.
It followed a storm of controversy triggered by Tennis Australia’s new CEO Andrew Abdo, who just days earlier had opened the door — some would say recklessly — to the possibility of shortening men’s Grand Slam matches. The backlash was immediate, passionate, and global. And the Australian Open heard it.
This is the full story: what happened, who said what, why it matters to Australia’s sporting identity, and what the mysterious tease about AO 2027 might mean for the future of the world’s first Grand Slam of the year. For more on Australia’s rich sporting culture, visit our Sports section at aisamagazine.com.
The Controversy: How It All Started
It began, as many modern sporting controversies do, at a business conference. On Monday 8 September 2026, Andrew Abdo — newly appointed CEO of Tennis Australia, having only recently taken over from Craig Tiley — took the stage at SportNXT, a sports leadership summit held in Melbourne.
Abdo’s background is in rugby league, not tennis. Before joining Tennis Australia, he spent more than a decade with the National Rugby League. That context matters, because his comments reflected a business executive’s perspective on a 150-year-old sport — one focused on audience growth, broadcast appeal, and competition with other entertainment products.
“Sport is entertainment. And clearly there’s unbelievable athleticism involved with the sport at that level. But the rules and the format and the product has to evolve.” — Andrew Abdo, Tennis Australia CEO, SportNXT Melbourne, September 2026
He went further, floating the idea that Grand Slam matches — at least in the earlier rounds — might no longer need to be played over five sets.
“Maybe in the future, Slams at different rounds or at different lengths of duration, maybe we’re not playing best-of-five all the way through, maybe the point scoring system changes.” — Andrew Abdo
The reaction was swift. Tennis fans, former players, commentators, and current tour professionals pushed back hard. Social media lit up. The debate that followed was not just about match length — it was about the soul of the sport.
The Australian Open’s Response: ‘Five-Set Tennis Is Here to Stay’
By Thursday, September 10, the Australian Open had moved to contain the situation. In a carefully worded statement posted across its official Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) accounts, the tournament confirmed its commitment to the five-set format and walked back its own CEO’s comments.
“While innovation is part of the AO’s DNA, five-set tennis is here to stay. We’ll reveal more on what’s coming to AO 2027 soon.” — Australian Open official statement, September 10, 2026
The statement did two things simultaneously: it reassured the tennis world that the classic format was safe, and it teased something new for 2027 — leaving fans intrigued about what innovations might be coming to Melbourne Park without dismantling the foundations of the game.
Jim Courier, the two-time Australian Open champion and respected tennis broadcaster, offered a measured perspective on the Tennis Channel: “A new guy has to have new ideas.” Courier acknowledged that the reaction to Abdo’s comments was predictable, but also suggested that the debate itself is healthy for a sport trying to navigate a changing entertainment landscape.
What the Players Said: From Tiafoe to Djokovic
The debate did not stay in boardrooms and broadcast studios. It reached the locker rooms and press conferences of the US Open, where some of the world’s best players were competing at the same time.
Frances Tiafoe: The Honest Answer
Frances Tiafoe, the American who had just survived a near five-hour five-set epic on Wednesday, gave what may be the most honest answer any player offered on the topic: “We’ve seen so many epics in five-setters. Do I love five-setters? Absolutely not. There’s a lot of times where I’m up two sets to love, I would love to shake hands and go home. But it’s tennis, man.”
He added, significantly: “I grew up watching so many incredible five-setters. Novak-Rafa, Federer-Rafa, epic five-setters that go on for hours and hours. That’s the history of the game. You do that, I feel like your slam doesn’t mean as much personally if you get it done in a two-out-of-three format.”
Novak Djokovic: Nuance Over Abolition
Novak Djokovic, the 24-time Grand Slam champion who is himself no stranger to five-set epics, offered a more nuanced position. Speaking in late July, Djokovic said: “We should change the format of the scoring. Not play up to six games a set, play up to four, possibly no ad, best of five sets, keep the matches within the two-hour window. It’s best for everyone.”
Djokovic’s position is notable: he supports maintaining five sets but wants to restructure the scoring within sets to compress match time. That is a fundamentally different conversation from abolishing the format altogether — and one worth having.
Earlier at Wimbledon 2024, Djokovic had also suggested that perhaps the opening rounds could be played as best-of-three, with five sets kicking in from the quarterfinals. Again, not abolition — refinement.
Andy Roddick: What Makes Tennis Tennis
Andy Roddick, the most recent American to win a Grand Slam, addressed the debate on his podcast Served: “I kind of like the fact that we have a sport where you get into these longform matches and it’s the hardest thing on earth. If you take that away, can we lay that claim anymore?”
Roddick’s point cuts to the heart of the debate. Five-set tennis is not just a format — it is a test of physical endurance, mental resilience, and tactical intelligence across a span of hours that no other racket sport demands. It is part of what makes a Grand Slam title categorically different from any other trophy in tennis.
Why This Debate Is Happening Now: The Bigger Picture
The five-set debate did not emerge from nowhere. Several converging forces are pushing tennis — particularly its administrators — to reconsider the sport’s format:
1. The Late-Night Problem
The timing of Abdo’s comments was not accidental. In the days before his SportNXT speech, the US Open had produced multiple matches finishing well past midnight — one ending at 3:33am local time, involving Carlos Alcaraz and Ben Shelton. That is not a sustainable broadcast model for a sport competing for prime-time eyeballs.
The four Grand Slams are now the only professional tennis events where men play five sets. The Davis Cup switched to three-set matches in 2019. The Olympics reduced men’s singles to three sets, retaining five only for the final until the Tokyo Games. All ATP and WTA tour-level events are three sets. Grand Slams are the last holdout.
2. The Younger Audience Challenge
Every major sport is grappling with how to appeal to younger audiences who consume content differently from previous generations. Shorter attention spans, mobile-first viewing, and competition from streaming platforms have reshaped what ‘watching sport’ means. Tennis is not immune to these pressures.
Abdo explicitly framed his comments in this context, noting that other sports — he cited Major League Baseball’s introduction of the pitch clock as an example — have successfully introduced time-saving rule changes without losing their core identity.
3. Player Welfare
Five-set matches in extreme heat place significant physical demands on players. The Australian Open is famously played during the Melbourne summer, where temperatures regularly exceed 35°C on court. Extended matches in these conditions carry genuine welfare risks. This is not a trivial concern.
The Case for Five-Set Tennis: Why the Format Is Irreplaceable
Despite the legitimate pressures described above, the arguments for preserving five-set tennis at Grand Slams are compelling — and they go beyond nostalgia.
It Is the Ultimate Test
Grand Slam titles are considered the gold standard in tennis precisely because they are the hardest to win. Seven rounds, best-of-five sets, over two weeks — surviving that requires a calibre of fitness, mental strength, and adaptability that three-set formats simply cannot reveal. Champions self-select differently.
It Produces the Greatest Matches
The matches that define tennis history — the ones that become folklore — are overwhelmingly five-setters. Three-set matches can be brilliant. But the come-from-behind victories, the two-sets-to-love comebacks, the five-hour epics that end at dawn — these are only possible in five-set formats.
Consider: Novak Djokovic has played 48 five-set matches at Grand Slams, holding a staggering 37-10 record. Roger Federer went 31-17 in 48 five-set Grand Slam matches. Stan Wawrinka holds the record for most five-set Grand Slam matches played, with 49. These numbers tell the story of careers defined by the format.
It Differentiates Grand Slams from Everything Else
If Grand Slams adopt three-set formats, what separates them from a Masters 1000 event? The prestige of a Slam derives partly from its length and difficulty. Compress that, and you compress the meaning of the title. As Tiafoe said: a Slam won over two-of-three sets would not feel like the same achievement.
Fans Stay Engaged Differently
There is ample evidence that deep five-set matches — when they occur — generate enormous audience engagement. The 2012 Australian Open final between Djokovic and Nadal, which lasted 5 hours and 53 minutes and finished at 1:37am Melbourne time, is not remembered as a failure of scheduling. It is remembered as one of the greatest sporting events ever staged in Australia. People who watched it still talk about it.
The Greatest Five-Set Matches in Australian Open History
To understand what is at stake, consider what five-set tennis has given Australian Open fans over the decades:
2012 Final: Djokovic vs Nadal — The Longest Grand Slam Final Ever
Five hours and 53 minutes. A 5–7, 6–4, 6–2, 6–7, 7–5 scoreline. A ninth game that contained a 31-shot rally. The match finished at 1:37am Melbourne time, and both men were given chairs at the trophy presentation because their legs could barely support them. Steve Flink, author of The Greatest Tennis Matches of All Time, called it “one of the greatest matches of all time — easily one of the 10 best since the Open era of tennis started in 1968.”
2009 Final: Nadal vs Federer — A Moment of Truth
Nadal walked onto Melbourne Park having survived a gruelling five-hour semifinal against Fernando Verdasco. He then played four hours and 23 minutes against Federer in a five-set final. When it was over, Federer wept at the trophy ceremony, hugging his idol Rod Laver. It was one of the most emotionally charged nights in Australian Open history — and it required every one of those five sets to reach that peak.
2013 & 2014: Djokovic vs Wawrinka — Rivalry in the Shadows
Stan Wawrinka and Djokovic produced back-to-back five-set epics. In 2013, Djokovic won 12–10 in the fifth. In 2014, Wawrinka returned the favour, winning 9–7 in the fifth on his way to his first Grand Slam title. Neither match would have been possible in a three-set format.
2026 Semifinal: Djokovic vs Sinner
At the 2026 Australian Open, Djokovic produced one of the great comeback victories of his career, defeating defending champion and world number two Jannik Sinner in a five-set thriller, 3–6, 6–3, 4–6, 6–4, 6–4, to reach the final. He ultimately fell to Carlos Alcaraz in the final — but that semifinal, only possible in five-set format, was the kind of match that keeps fans watching.
What AO 2027 Might Bring: Reading Between the Lines
The most intriguing part of the Australian Open’s statement was not the confirmation of five-set tennis. It was the teaser:
“We’ll reveal more on what’s coming to AO 2027 soon.”
What does this mean? Based on the AO’s history of innovation and the context of Abdo’s comments, several possibilities are worth considering:
- Enhanced scheduling systems to prevent late-night finishes, including staggered start times and capped evening sessions
- Revised shot-clock enforcement to reduce time-wasting between points and speed up overall match pace
- Expanded use of tie-breaks in deciding sets — already used at some Slams — to prevent marathon fifth sets
- New fan engagement activations, following the success of the AO’s ‘One-Point Slam’ event where an amateur won a million dollars
- Possible changes to the women’s format, building on former CEO Craig Tiley’s suggestion that women should also play five sets
What seems clear is that the AO is genuinely committed to evolution — but on its own terms, not under public pressure. The five-set format will remain. What surrounds it may change significantly.
Why This Matters Specifically for Australian Tennis Fans
The Australian Open is not just a tennis tournament. It is one of the great recurring events on Australia’s sporting calendar — sitting alongside the Melbourne Cup, the AFL Grand Final, and the Boxing Day Test as events that unite the country around a shared spectacle.
For Australians, the question of five-set format is not abstract. It is about the matches they have stayed up to watch. The Federer-Nadal 2009 final. The Djokovic-Nadal 2012 monster. The night Lleyton Hewitt pushed the best players in the world to five sets on his home court. These are part of the national sporting memory.
Australia’s own top-ranked player, Alex de Minaur, has himself been involved in five-set battles at Melbourne Park and advanced to the fourth round at his home Slam for five consecutive years. For Australian fans watching de Minaur fight through five sets on Rod Laver Arena, the format is not a burden — it is the stakes that make winning meaningful.
The Australian Open is the world’s first Grand Slam of each season. What it decides about format, innovation, and tradition sets the tone for the entire tennis calendar. That is not a small responsibility.
Frequently Asked Questions: Australian Open Five-Set Format
Why do Australian Open men’s matches use five sets?
The best-of-five-set format is used at all four Grand Slam tournaments — the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and US Open — for men’s singles matches. It is the only format used in men’s professional tennis where five sets are played, with all ATP Tour and Davis Cup events using best-of-three. The format exists to maximise the test of endurance, consistency, and mental resilience that Grand Slam titles are meant to represent.
Is the Australian Open changing to three sets?
No. The Australian Open officially confirmed in September 2026 that five-set tennis is here to stay. While new CEO Andrew Abdo raised the possibility of format changes at the SportNXT summit in Melbourne, the tournament quickly issued a statement reaffirming its commitment to the five-set format for men’s singles.
What is Tennis Australia CEO Andrew Abdo’s background?
Andrew Abdo previously spent more than a decade with the National Rugby League before becoming CEO of Tennis Australia. He replaced Craig Tiley, who left to lead the USTA, the organiser of the US Open. Abdo’s comments about format changes reflected his background in sports administration with a focus on audience growth and commercial sustainability.
What is the longest Australian Open final ever?
The 2012 Australian Open men’s final between Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal is the longest Grand Slam final ever played, lasting 5 hours and 53 minutes. Djokovic won 5–7, 6–4, 6–2, 6–7(5), 7–5. The match finished at 1:37am Melbourne time.
What changes are coming to AO 2027?
The Australian Open teased that changes are coming to the 2027 tournament but has not yet revealed specifics. Given the AO’s track record of innovation — including the popular One-Point Slam event — changes are likely to involve fan experience, scheduling, or technology, rather than the five-set format itself.
Do women play five sets at the Australian Open?
No. Women’s singles matches at all Grand Slams, including the Australian Open, are played as best-of-three sets. Former Tennis Australia CEO Craig Tiley had suggested exploring a move to five sets for women, but no changes have been formally implemented.
Final Verdict: The Right Call for Tennis, Australia, and the Sport’s Future
The Australian Open’s decision to reaffirm five-set tennis was the right one — and not just because it bowed to public pressure. It was right because five-set tennis is the irreplaceable engine of the sport’s greatest moments. It is what makes a Grand Slam title mean something categorically different from every other trophy in professional tennis.
Andrew Abdo is not wrong that innovation matters. The AO is right to explore new formats, new technologies, and new ways to engage audiences who have never watched a five-hour match before. But the five-set format is not the problem — it is the product. The opportunity lies in everything around it: the scheduling, the presentation, the fan experience, and the broadcast packaging that brings those epic matches to audiences who might otherwise miss them.
As tennis heads toward AO 2027, the conversation is not over. But the foundation is settled. Five-set tennis is here to stay in Melbourne — and that is something every Australian tennis fan should be glad about.
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