15 December 2017 Summer of Tennis heats up on Seven LIVE on Channel 7, 7TWO, 7mate and the 7TENNIS app Seven’s summer of tennis is set to be a scorcher with the superstars of tennis descending on Australia. Reigning champion Serena Williams is on track to return after giving birth to her first child. Federer, Djokovic, Murray, Nadal, Williams, Barty, Stosur and Kyrgios will all be vying for a shot at the year’s first Grand Slam title. Seven will serve up more coverage than ever, allowing viewers to watch live anywhere, anytime, on any device. The Hopman Cup will start Seven’s summer of tennis from December 30, followed by the Australian Open series events – the Brisbane International, APIA International Sydney, Kooyong Classic, and a FAST 4 night featuring Nick Kyrgios, culminating in the first Grand Slam of 2018, The Australian Open. In addition to live and exclusive match coverage on Channel 7, 7TWO and 7mate, fans will be able to watch more tennis than ever via the 7TENNIS app. This exclusive live online coverage through the 7TENNIS app allows fans to: live stream all of Seven’s coverage of the Summer of Tennis from Channel 7, 7TWO and 7mate. choose up to 16 courts at the Australian Open. choose up to three courts at the Brisbane International and Sydney International. go behind the scenes and into the press rooms of the world’s biggest tournaments re-live the best moments, match highlights and get exclusive interviews with our richest video on demand offering ever. Fans can also upgrade to 7TENNIS Premium for a one-off fee of $14.99 (data free for eligible Optus mobile customers) to access: selected full match replays. more than 600 matches live streamed in HD. no pre-rolls so you can get to the action faster. Fans can keep up to date with all of the action from the Summer of 7TENNIS on Facebook (@7Tennis), Twitter (@7Tennis) and Instagram (@7Tennis). So whether it’s on free-to-air TV, or 7TENNIS, Seven will deliver the most comprehensive and compelling coverage of the Australian tennis summer ever seen after last year reaching 12.9 million Australians. Once again the world’s leading tennis experts from Seven’s commentary team will guide viewers through the action. This year, Seven’s summer of tennis commentary team includes Grand Slam champions JIM COURIER and LLEYTON HEWITT who return to provide expert analysis. Joining them will be an unrivaled team of tennis experts including TODD WOODBRIDGE, JOHN NEWCOMBE, SAM SMITH, JOHN FITZGERALD, RENNAE STUBBS, ROGER RASHEED, ALICIA MOLIK and HENRI LECONTE – as well as Seven’s accomplished team of TV hosts including MEL MCLAUGHLIN, JIM WILSON, HAMISH MCLACHLAN, TODD WOODBRIDGE and JASON RICHARDSON, along with commentators and reporters who will help to bring the Australian Open series alive. Full broadcast and commentary details are attached. For more information: Greg Smith [email protected] | 0438 777 164 Stefan Sgarioto [email protected] | 0477 714 209 SEVEN COMMENTARY TEAM JIM COURIER Jim Courier’s name is synonymous with the Australian Open and Melbourne Park. From his celebratory jump into the Yarra River after winning his two titles, to his always entertaining and informative expert analysis, Courier has been a popular feature of Seven’s broadcast since 2005. Jim won 23 career titles in all, including two Australian Opens (1992, 1993) and two French Opens (1991, 1992). He also spent 58 weeks as the top-ranked player in the world, having first ascended there aged 21. LLEYTON HEWITT Two-time Grand Slam winner and 2005 Australian Open finalist Lleyton Hewitt returns to the Seven commentary box. He will again balance playing and commentary commitments as he returns to the doubles, however viewers will again be treated to some of the most insightful and current thinking on the game today. TODD WOODBRIDGE Todd Woodbridge has earned a reputation as a forthright and insightful commentator, both as the host of Seven’s Wimbledon coverage and an integral member of Seven’s summer of tennis. As a player he was best known as one half of The Woodies, alongside Mark Woodforde. Together they won every Grand Slam title as well as the Olympic Games gold medal in Atlanta in 1996. All up, they won 61 career doubles titles, making them the most successful doubles team in men’s tennis history. SAM SMITH Sam Smith turned an impressive career as a player into an outstanding one as a broadcaster. A former No.1 British women’s player, Sam has been a member of the Eurosport, Sky Sports, BBC Radio, BBC TV and Seven tennis commentary teams. Sam came to the Australian Open for the first time as a 15-year-old in 1988 to play juniors at Melbourne Park in its first year of operation – a trip she credits with inspiring her to become a tennis pro. MEL MCLAUGHLIN Mel McLaughlin takes on hosting roles for Seven’s Summer of Tennis across the Sydney International and Australian Open. Mel is the sports presenter for 7 News Sydney and has covered many major sporting events on the world stage including the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, Olympic Winter Games, FIFA World Cup and Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games. JOHN NEWCOMBE The former World No. 1 is a legend of Australian tennis who had an imposing 45-14 win loss record at the Australian Open, winning the men’s singles in 1973 and 1975. He also collected five Australian Open doubles titles. Since his retirement he has carved out a successful media career as a tennis commentator and analyst, most notably at Wimbledon. JOHN FITZGERALD John’s Fitzgerald’s memories of the Australian Open stretch back to Kooyong where he won a doubles title in 1982. As a player, his greatest achievements came during 11 years in the Davis Cup – including playing a major role in Australia defeating Sweden in the 1983 and 1986 finals. John was also Australia’s top ranked player, played in two Olympics, won six ATP Tour singles titles, 30 doubles titles (including seven Grand Slam titles) and received the Order of Australia Medal in 1993. JIM WILSON Jim Wilson is the sports editor for 7 News in Sydney and Seven’s afternoon news bulletin. As a journalist Jim has covered some of the most significant sporting events of recent times such as Olympic Games, the British Open golf, South African and West Indian cricket tours, World Cup soccer, NRL State of Origin, AFL Grand Finals and most recently hosted the 2017 Rugby League World Cup. Jim has been part of the Seven Sports team since 1992 in Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney. HAMISH MCLACHLAN Hamish McLachlan comes from a strong sporting background with management and broadcast experience in sports including AFL, Olympics, tennis and cricket. Over the past nine years Hamish has hosted Channel 7’s AFL Game Day alongside some of the biggest names in the game including Leigh Matthews, Matthew Richardson and Tim Watson. Hamish has also featured in Channel 7’s Melbourne Cup Carnival racing coverage and Australian Open tennis. BASIL ZEMPILAS Basil Zempilas is an acclaimed TV host, reporter and commentator, having covered AFL for almost 25 years as well as calling at six Olympic Games – including the Rio 2016 Olympic Games and the famous Steven Bradbury’s ‘Last Man Standing’ Winter Olympics victory. Basil is the 7News sport presenter in Perth and an AFL, tennis and swimming commentator for Seven. GIAAN ROONEY Giaan Rooney joined Seven in December 2012 to take on a wide-ranging role reporting across events including the Australian Open and Spring Racing. Giaan is an Olympic gold medalist and former world record holder who retired from competitive swimming in 2006 to focus on a career in the media. HENRI LECONTE After a stunning debut in the commentary box in 2010 as a special guest, Henri Leconte has entertained audiences with his flair and energy ever since. As a player he reached two Grand Slam singles semi-finals at the French Open and Wimbledon in 1986, and attained his career-high singles ranking of No 5. In 1988, he reached the men's singles final at the French Open. Henri retired from the tour in 1996 with nine career singles titles and 10 doubles titles. ROGER RASHEED Roger has seen the best of tennis from all angles. Roger was 16 when he became the youngest player to qualify for the men’s singles in his home Grand Slam, a record later broken by Lleyton Hewitt, who Roger went on to coach. Under Roger, Lleyton rose to No.2, and played in two Grand Slam finals. Roger has coached several current players on tour including Gael Monfils and Grigor Dimitrov. RENNAE STUBBS Rennae Stubbs won four Grand Slam doubles titles, two Grand Slam mixed doubles titles and represented Australia at three successive Olympic Games, but it’s her Australian Open triumph in 2000 which she holds dearest. Rennae also recorded more double triumphs than any other Australian woman – a remarkable 60 WTA Tour titles. JASON RICHARDSON Known for his energetic passion and knowledge for sport, and a winner of the prestigious Stawell Gift, Jason will be part of our tennis team again after another outstanding season hosting and reporting across Seven’s autumn and spring carnival racing events. NEIL KEARNEY A champion spinner of yarns at the Olympics, Commonwealth Games, the Melbourne Cup Carnival and almost every other sporting event Australians hold dear, it’s fitting Neil Kearney will again be at the Grand Slam of Asia/Pacific. NATHAN TEMPLETON Nathan joined 7News in July 2012 as Sports Reporter and summer Sports Presenter, before becoming Sunrise reporter out of Melbourne.