Australian Open 2025: Women's draw, schedule, players, prize money breakdown, and more

The Australian Open is around the corner, as the qualifiers are already underway. The women's singles draw is set to feature some exciting matches throughout the tournament.

Aryna Sabalenka successfully defended her title in 2024 by defeating Zheng Qinwen in the final. The Belarusian has been in stellar form, most recently winning the Brisbane International, and she will be a heavy favorite to win.

Coco Gauff is another player who is among the tournament contenders given her run of form while Iga Swiatek always needs to be considered among the frontrunners in any Grand Slam that takes place these days. The likes of Elena Rybakina, Zheng Qinwen, Jessica Pegula, and Karolina Muchova are also capable of having deep runs at the tournament.

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What is the Australian Open?

The Australian Open is the first Grand Slam of the tennis season that takes place in Melbourne in January. The inaugural women's singles event took place in 1922, with Margaret Molesworth beating Esna Boyd in the final.

Margaret Court has won the most singles titles among female players at the Melbourne Major, triumphing a whopping 11 times. Serena Williams, Steffi Graf, Martina Navratilova, Chris Evert, and Monica Seles are some of the legendary players to have triumphed at the Melbourne Major throughout their careers.

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Venue

Like every year since 1988, Melbourne Park will be the venue for the Australian Open 2025.

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Draw and Players

Coco Gauff practicing ahead of the Australian Open (Image Source: Getty)

Two-time champion Aryna Sabalenka is a heavy favorite to win the women's singles title at the Melbourne Major and she will take on Sloane Stephens in the first round, with the winner facing either Sonay Kartal or Jessica Bouzas Maneiro in the second round.

Second seed Iga Swiatek has never gone past the quarterfinals at the Australian Open but given her quality, there is a fair chance of her going all the way this year if she is at her best. The Pole will take on Katerina Siniakova in the opening round, with the winner taking on either Katie Volynets or Rebecca Sramkova in the second round.

Third seed Coco Gauff is entering the Grand Slam after helping USA to victory at the United Cup, and she will lock horns with 2020 champion Sofia Kenin in the first round. The likes of Jasmine Paolini, Zheng Qinwen, Jessica Pegula, and Elena Rybakina are among the other Top-10 seeds at the Melbourne Major.

There are some interesting first-round matches to look forward to, namely, Belinda Bencic vs Jelena Ostapenko, Naomi Osaka vs Caroline Garcia, and Emma Raducanu vs Ekaterina Alexandrova.

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Schedule

Main draw action at the 2025 edition of the Melbourne Major will commence on Sunday, January 12, according to the WTA website. The women's singles final is scheduled to take place on January 24.

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Prize Money

The women's singles champion at the Australian Open will bag A$3,500,000 while the runner-up will pocket A$1,900,000. Here is the full prize money breakdown of this year's edition of the Melbourne Major:

Stage	Prize Money	Ranking Points
Champion	A$3,500,000	2000
Runner-up	A$1,900,000	1300
Semifinals	A$1,100,000	800
Quarterfinals	A$650,000	400
Fourth round	A$420,000	200
Third round	A$290,000	100
Second round	A$200,000	50
First round	A$132,000	10

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Where to Watch

Tennis fans in the US, UK, Australia, Canada, and India can stream live action from the 2025 Australian Open on the following sites and channels:

USA: Tennis Channel, ESPN

UK: Eurosport

Australia: Stan Sport, Nine Network

Canada: TSN, RDS

India: Sony Sports

For more information regarding the broadcast of matches, click here.