mtenis.com.pl

Author Tennis Australia
In one of the longest sporting partnerships in Australian history, Kia Corporation is proud to celebrate its 20th anniversary as the major partner of the Australian Open in 2021. The occasion was marked with the official Australian reveal of Kia’s new logo at the Australian Open vehicle handover ceremony held today at Grand Slam Oval – which features Kia Australia’s first electric vehicle, the Niro.

Current world tennis superstars Dylan Alcott and Nick Kyrgios had the honour of uncovering the new Kia logo as part of the ceremony proceedings, which saw Kia hand over the keys to the Australian Open for its 130-strong fleet of cars dedicated to ensuring players, officials, media and VIP guests are transported securely and in style.

Since 2002, Kia has played a pivotal role in supporting players and promoting the growth of tennis – Kia’s fleet of courtesy vehicles have to date accumulated over six million kilometres and tens of thousands of journeys during the Australian Open.

The Kia Australian Open 2021 fleet comprises of a mix of stylish and dynamic Sorento SUVs and Carnival GUVs. For the first time ever, the Kia AO fleet also includes a collection of award winning and highly anticipated Kia Niro Hybrid electric vehicles.

Kia Australia Chief Executive Officer James Cho said the milestone 20th anniversary is a momentous occasion that represents the strength of the relationship and shared values that exist between Kia and the Australian Open.

“There are few things as exhilarating as watching a tennis game in motion – especially at one of the biggest and most enduring sporting events in the world. The two-decade long partnership between Kia and the Australian Open is a true representation of the passion that exists for the sport,” Cho said.

“The growth and evolution that both Kia and the Australian Open have undergone over the past 20 years is extraordinary. At a time when we have been faced with such unprecedented challenges, we are entering our next phase of growth and innovation as a brand. We are extremely excited for everything that is to come.”


Australian Open Tournament Director Craig Tiley said the Grand Slam is proud of its long-standing relationship with Kia.

“Kia has helped drive the success of the Australian Open over the past 20 years, and we’re grateful for their on-going commitment to the tournament,” Tiley said.

“In a chapter full of firsts for the Australian Open, Kia Australia’s first-ever hybrid electric vehicle will debut among the fleet of 130 Kia courtesy vehicles, which will transport players and tournament officials.

“This is an exciting sustainable evolution of the Australian Open, and we are looking forward to continuing our successful partnership with Kia.”

The launch of the new Kia logo celebrates the automaker’s bold vision and transformation for the future. The sleek new logo unveils a new brand direction and slogan ‘Movement that Inspires’, representing Kia’s ambitions to establish a leadership position in the future mobility market and its drive to become an icon for change and innovation.

A focus on inspiring customers as their mobility needs evolve, popularising electric vehicles and creating a tailored offering to meet the needs of the local Australian market are examples of this new brand vision in action.

As a result of the pandemic, considerable changes have taken place across both the event schedule and on-ground experience at the Australian Open in 2021. Kia has adapted its on-ground presence at Grand Slam Oval in the Melbourne Park precinct this year to bring their new brand evolution to life for not only tennis-goers but the wider broadcast and digital audience.

A first of its kind LED digital cube display will be the focus for Kia’s Australian Open activation, the build consists of a 12-metre wide by 2.6-metre-tall screen and displays Kia’s new EV vehicles for the first time in Australia.

Titled ‘Kia-Morphia’, the LED digital cube installation is set to stun audiences with an immersive, 3D anamorphic illusion created to represent ‘Movement that Inspires’. Featuring impressive animations of Rafael Nadal in action, Kia’s new EV vehicle range and visuals that recreate natural elements to represent the new brand direction, Kia-Morphia showcases a visual feast like no other.

Kia Australia General Manager of Marketing Dean Norbiato said the shift in focus presents a unique opportunity for Kia to secure more engagement and interaction from tennis fans and the public across the Australian Open.

“Putting the fan experience at the heart of our Australian Open experiential strategy has always been key, however with the picture looking a lot different this year we needed to cater for the bigger digital and broadcast audience, which actually could mean more eyeballs than ever before,” Norbiato said.

“Our Kia-Morphia installation is the first thing that grabs your attention when you visit Grand Slam Oval at Melbourne Park and possesses organic share appeal, which helps carry the new brand reveal further.”

Kia’s ‘Kia-Morphia’ installation and a collection of Kia’s EV vehicles will be on display on Grand Slam Oval at the Australian Open from Monday 8 February, for two weeks.

Emirates ATP Scouting Report looks at 10 things to watch in Melbourne
The Australian swing got off to a thrilling start with a jam-packed week, which featured the ATP Cup, the Great Ocean Road Open and the Murray River Open. Now the world's best players will compete in the Australian Open, the first Grand Slam championship of the year.

ATPTour.com looks at 10 things to watch at Melbourne Park.

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1) Djokovic Going For Ninth Australian Open Title
No player has been more at home inside Rod Laver Arena than World No. 1 Novak Djokovic, who is an eight-time Australian Open champion. The Serbian star captured his first Grand Slam trophy in Melbourne 13 years ago, and he has dominated the tournament since, tallying a 75-8 record. The top seed will face a familiar foe in the first round against Frenchman Jeremy Chardy, against whom he has won all 30 sets he has played (leads ATP Head2Head series 13-0).

But Djokovic has plenty of tricky opponents in his section of the draw, with 2014 champion Stan Wawrinka and former World No. 3 Milos Raonic potentially looming in the fourth round. The highest-ranked player in the Serbian’s quarter is 2018 Nitto ATP Finals champion Alexander Zverev, who challenged him in a tight three-setter at the ATP Cup.


2) Will Rafa Win Record 21st Grand Slam Title?
Rafael Nadal will pursue history at this year’s Australian Open, just four months after winning his 13th Roland Garros title to tie Roger Federer’s record of 20 Grand Slam crowns. If 2009 champion Nadal triumphs at Melbourne Park, he will hold that record alone for the first time. The Spaniard would also become the first player to win the Career Grand Slam twice during the Open Era (since April 1968).

The left-hander has reached at least the quarter-finals of the Australian Open in 12 of his past 13 appearances. Nadal will begin his run with his first ATP Head2Head meeting against Serbian Laslo Djere.

3) Thiem Going For Two In A Row
One year ago, Dominic Thiem reached his first hard-court Grand Slam final at the Australian Open. It took all Djokovic had to rally from two sets to one down and prevent the Austrian from earning his first major crown. But Thiem did not let that close call set him back. He lifted his first Grand Slam trophy at the US Open, and is now the No. 3 player in the FedEx ATP Rankings. Thiem will try to add another major title to his resume Down Under, beginning his run against Mikhail Kukushkin, with Aussie Nick Kyrgios looming in the third round.

4) Medvedev Enters With Momentum
Nobody on the ATP Tour finished 2020 in better form than Daniil Medvedev. The Russian played some of the best tennis of his career to win the Rolex Paris Masters and then the Nitto ATP Finals, where he beat the top three players in the FedEx ATP Rankings. “It's definitely a much bigger challenge in a Grand Slam because it's out of five sets. All of them, the top three, they're machines physically. We all know it. Hopefully I can be one of them soon also, that when people know they have to play me out of five sets, they're going to be scared because they think, ‘This guy is scary,’” Medvedev said.

The World No. 4, who has won a career-high 14 consecutive matches after leading Russia to the ATP Cup title, is arguably the second favourite behind Djokovic at the Australian Open. He will be fully focussed on his opening test against Canadian Vasek Pospisil, who beat him in Rotterdam last year (Medvedev leads their ATP Head2Head 2-1).


5) Tsitsipas Searching For Slam Breakthrough
One of Stefanos Tsitsipas’ biggest breakthroughs came at the Australian Open in 2019. Just months after capturing the 2018 Next Gen ATP Finals title, the Greek reached the semi-finals in Melbourne to become the youngest male player to reach the last four at a major since 20-year-old Novak Djokovic at the 2007 US Open. But Tsitsipas has not advanced further than that at six Slams since. Will this be the event where he takes the next step? The 22-year-old earned two singles wins at the ATP Cup, and he will try to stay sharp in the first round of the Australian Open against former World No. 6 Gilles Simon.

6) Red-Hot Rublev
How many players are hotter than the big-hitting Andrey Rublev? The Russian star led the ATP Tour with five titles last season and he competed in the Nitto ATP Finals for the first time. Now Rublev, who dominated at No. 2 singles for Russia in the ATP Cup, will try to earn a career-best Grand Slam showing. He is one of three players (also Carreno Busta and Thiem) to reach the quarter-finals at the past two majors. Now the World No. 8 will try to advance past the last four at a major for the first time. Rublev could play countryman Medvedev in the quarter-finals.

7) Shapo-Sinner Highlights First-Round Blockbusters
There are plenty of tantalising first-round matches at this year’s Australian Open, with 11th seed Denis Shapovalov and 2019 Next Gen ATP Finals champion Jannik Sinner leading the way. Matteo Berrettini, who led Italy to the ATP Cup final, will play former World No. 5 and two-time Grand Slam finalist Kevin Anderson, 18th seed Grigor Dimitrov will face Marin Cilic in a battle of former World No. 3s and Australian No. 1 Alex de Minaur will try to battle past two-time Australian Open quarter-finalist Tennys Sandgren.


Dangerous Floaters Abound
Anderson, Cilic, Sangdren and Sinner are all unseeded players to watch for that we already mentioned in our first-round blockbusters. But there are even more dark horses who could make an impact at Melbourne Park. #NextGenATP Carlos Alcaraz, a 17-year-old Spaniard, caused a stir last week by upsetting top seed David Goffin, Nick Kyrgios is always a dangerous opponent, especially at home, Reilly Opelka is one of if not the biggest server on the ATP Tour and Jan-Lennard Struff showed what he is capable of by helping Germany reach the semi-finals of the ATP Cup.

9) De Minaur Leads Aussie Hopes
De Minaur will be the top-ranked Australian in the field for the second time (also 2019), and he will try to follow up on his career-best Grand Slam result from last year’s US Open, where he reached the quarter-finals. The 21-year-old, who will turn 22 on 17 February, will need to dig in from the first point, with two-time Australian Open quarter-finalist Sandgren across the net. Their first ATP Head2Head clash promises to be a physical battle, as they are two of the fittest players on Tour.

John Millman, who was Australia’s No. 2 singles player in the ATP Cup, will try for another good showing at home after pushing Roger Federer to a fifth-set tie-break one year ago. Kyrgios will also try to make his mark in just his second tournament since Acapulco last February. The last Australian man to win the Australian Open was Mark Edmondson in 1976.

10) Doubles Down Under
Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury, who just missed out on the year-end No. 1 FedEx ATP Doubles Team Ranking in 2020, are back to defend their Australian Open title against a hungry field of tough teams both new and old. Former champions in the field include Jamie Murray/Bruno Soares (2016) and Pierre-Hugues-Herbert/Nicolas Mahut. Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah, the 2019 year-end No. 1 team, will try to start off the year on a high note, while new duos Nikola Mektic/Mate Pavic and Wesley Koolhof/Lukasz Kubot will seek an impressive Slam debut together.