Late-night tennis has a habit of turning carefully planned routines into improvisation under stadium lights.
Emma Raducanu arrived in Melbourne and found herself slated to play the final match on Margaret Court Arena on Sunday night, and she was blunt about how that order of play feels to players.
Raducanu raises a scheduling eyebrow
“I think it’s very difficult to be scheduling women’s matches after a potential five-set match.”
Emma Raducanu
Raducanu’s point is practical and a little weary without being dramatic, which suits her. Historic late finishes at Grand Slams make the worry real rather than hypothetical for players and fans alike.
The Athletic and BBC coverage notes that late finishes have become part of slam lore, with women sometimes starting very late because men’s matches have run long, and there is a tangible toll on routines.
Raducanu, the 2021 U.S. Open champion and listed this month as the No. 28 seed, faces Thailand’s Mananchaya Sawangkaew after the night session’s opening men’s match featuring Jenson Brooksby and Alexander Bublik.
Organisers, history and the 15-day format
Tennis Australia did not immediately respond to requests for comment, and tournament planners point to broader logic such as neutral court assignments and the shift to a 15-day format that began in 2025 to ease scheduling pressure.
Those changes matter, but they do not remove the awkward commercial facts crowding the discussion: night-session tickets are sold for two matches and a late five-setter will often empty the stadium before the second match gets a real audience.
There is also a fairness argument against swapping the order every time. Women receive equal prize money and so should expect equivalent playing conditions, which can include late matches when schedules force them that way.
Player routines, preparation and small margins
Players build routines around predictable warm ups, eating times and energy spikes; when a preceding match stretches on they may end up warming and cooling repeatedly, which is wasteful and physically costly over a long tournament.
Raducanu tried to be pragmatic rather than vocal. She pushed her only official practice at the Australian Open back to 9 p.m. on Saturday to mimic night conditions and to practice eating and energy timing that fit a potential late start.
She acknowledged the learning curve. As she told reporters, playing a second night match in a slam semifinal felt similar but her experiences of truly late starts remain limited, so she is treating the situation as a lesson.
Raducanu has been rebuilding after injuries and made encouraging gains in 2025, climbing back into the world top 30 and playing more matches than in any previous season, so managing these schedule quirks is part of a larger comeback.
Fans and broadcasters will keep nudging tournament organisers toward what sells, and players will keep insisting on predictable conditions. Both pressures will shape how ordering of play evolves in future Australian Opens.
For now Raducanu is doing the practical work: adjusting meal and sleep timing, rehearsing under lights and trying to stay matter of fact about it, since complaining accomplishes little but a good night of practice might just help her when the clock runs late.
This report draws on articles from The Athletic and BBC Sport and aims to untangle why a schedule that seems small on paper feels large in practice for players and spectators at Grand Slams.
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Christoph Friedrich is a German tennis player and coach currently residing in Oakland, California. He began his tennis journey at the age of eight and has since dedicated his life to the sport. After working as a tennis coach and hitting partner in New York City for eight years, Christoph decided to share his knowledge and experience with tennis players around the world by creating the My Tennis Expert blog. His goal is to make tennis education accessible to everyone and help players select the best equipment for their game, from racquets and strings to shoes and overgrips. Christoph's extensive research and expertise in tennis technology make him a valuable resource for players of all levels.
