Australian Open 2012 (Day 2)

On Monday morning, we attempted to find a good brekkie place near our motel. But, it turns out that where we are staying is a bit of a wasteland when it comes to places to eat. The motel is across the street from a small park (see photo below--motel in the background)--and it's very close to an extremely busy highway (Kingsway).

We did manage to find a place though--through some dumb luck. Our breakfast was enormous--neither one of us could finish our meal. And it was greasy enough that we weren't hungry again for hours--which was perfect since we were trying to avoid buying a lot of food at the Aussie Open (it's not great and it's expensive).

In the morning, we were back at HiSense Arena where we watched a fun Legends' Doubles match between Forget/Leconte and Woodbridge/Woodforde. Henri Leconte was a character--and he knew how to entertain the crowd.

Then, we watched an incredible match between Nishikori (JPN) and Tsonga (FRA). Originally, I thought I would be cheering for Tsonga--but then I switched my allegiance to Nishikori. He played an amazing match; and I couldn't help but support the underdog.

The sun was its usual fierce and intense self that day. Once again, I am glad we bought seats in the shade--unlike these fans.

From the pain in our butts the previous day, we learned that it is best to stand up whenever the players switch sides. Granted, I realize that the players are really working their asses off--but even with seat cushions, our butts were getting tired too.

The next match was between Ferrer (ESP) and Gasquet (FRA). We only watched the beginning because we were tired and we needed to rest.

We found a tiny sliver of shade, made by the Rod Laver Arena.

After about an hour of rest, it was time for us to head into the Rod Laver Arena.

There were two problems with our seats, which we learned very quickly.

One: since we were sitting on the side, we had to move our heads from back and forth (left and right) in order to follow the ball. I think I prefer sitting behind the baseline.

Two: sitting in the lower bowl of the Rod Laver Arena at night is dangerous. The birds are attracted to the lights from the arena, and they circle around and shit everywhere. My neighbor sitting next to me got bombed twice. Fede got bombed once.

The first match was between Sharapova (RUS) and Lisicki (GER). Sharapova has a funny sounding grunt. It sounded a bit like a bird call. Hmm...maybe that's the reason why the birds kept circling.

But the best match was between Djokovic (SRB) and Hewitt (AUS). Needless to say, the Aussie crowd was overwhelming for Hewitt.

These guys cheered at every point (at least, that's what it seemed like) for Hewitt.

The Djokovic fans would also cheer--but they were no match for the Aussie fans. No worries though. Djokovic came through in a match that ended way too late (after 1:00 AM).

I seriously have to wonder about the timing of the Aussie Open. First, the weather is so incredibly hot that I feel as though the players are not able to play their best. Second, the evening games start so late that they finish after midnight. Otherwise, I think the Aussie Open is great. But, I do wonder what is the thinking behind playing during one of the hottest times of the year--and scheduling games that have the potential to last until 1:00 AM. There must be a reason, right?