The start of a new year is approaching, so the new tennis season is nearly here; Sky Sports will show more than 80 tournaments and 4,000 matches - including both season-ending finals and all Masters 1000 events - broadcast live every year on Sky Sports from 2024
Sunday 31 December 2023 20:01, UK
Live tennis is back on Sky Sports in 2024 with Rafael Nadal, Naomi Osaka, Andy Murray and Emma Raducanu just some of the big names in action during the first week of January.
In a year when the Novak Djokovic-Carlos Alcaraz rivalry is set to continue, alongside the ever-exciting WTA tour where Iga Swiatek leads the field, the new season promises to deliver plenty of drama.
As part of a new five-year deal, Sky Sports will show coverage of WTA and ATP 250, 500 and 1000 events (excluding domestic events), plus the US Open and season-ending finals.
The first live coverage actually all begins in the early hours of Sunday before two weeks of intense action in Asia and Oceania ahead of the Australian Open in mid-January. You can watch all the action over the next fortnight on Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sports Arena and Sky Sports Mix, the latter channel is free if you have a Sky box.
Earlier in 2023, Nadal revealed the upcoming season will "probably be my last year in the professional tour" so fans from all around the world will be desperate to potentially see the Spaniard for a final time.
The 22-time Grand Slam champion has not played since losing in the second round of the Australian Open at the start of this year and underwent surgery on his hip in the summer.
He makes his eagerly-anticipated return at the Brisbane International, which begins on Sunday live on Sky Sports, as a wild card and faces former Grand Slam champion Dominic Thiem in the early hours of Monday morning.
His coach Carlos Moya says Nadal is training "very well" but is concerned about his fitness over longer matches. A decent run in Brisbane will be a big boost for the 37-year-old and it will be fascinating to see how he fares after nearly 12 months out.
Murray is also in the draw after a mixed 2023 which included three challenger tournament wins but some frustrating Grand Slam exits.
At the age of 36, Murray, who has a difficult match against second seed Grigor Dimitrov from 8.30am UK time on New Year's Day, is also in the latter stages of his career but still believes he can win on the ATP Tour.
"It's great to see the Brisbane International back and I am really looking forward to returning to Queensland this summer," he said.
"I have great memories of winning the title in 2012 and 2013 and I would love to lift the trophy again for a third time in Brisbane."
Upcoming stars Holger Rune and Ben Shelton are also in action in the ATP 250 event, which has not featured on the calendar since 2019 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Sky Sports will show comprehensive live coverage of the big names in Brisbane on each day of competition.
Another player coming back to tennis is Naomi Osaka after she missed last season due to the birth of her daughter Shai in July.
The four-time Grand Slam champion was often the player to beat on hard courts before mental health issues in 2021.
She's a two-time winner at the Australian Open and received a wild card for the Brisbane International, where she will take on Germany's Tamara Korpatsch at 1am on Monday.
Aryna Sabalenka beat Elena Rybakina in the final of the 2023 Australian Open and both players went on to have strong campaigns, regularly challenging world No 1 Iga Swiatek. The pair will also be in Brisbane.
Former major champions Victoria Azarenka and Jelena Ostapenko are in the field too at the WTA 500 event - live on Sky Sports alongside the men's tournament.
Coco Gauff gave us one of the sporting highlights when she won the US Open in front of her home crowd to win her first major.
The teenager has been a sensation on the WTA tour since upsetting Venus Williams as a 15-year-old at Wimbledon in 2019 and is looking for more success in 2024.
She will be the top seed at the Auckland Classic, which starts on Monday, January 1 with Ukrainian Elina Svitolina another name to watch out for.
Britain's Emma Raducanu is also back in action after eight months out from the sport following multiple surgeries with Sky Sports set to show her return.
Raducanu has not played since the Stuttgart Open in April and also begins the new season with a new coach, Nick Cavaday, who was her junior coach.
The 20-year-old has been given a wild card for the Auckland Classic and believes she's a better tennis player compared to 12 months ago.
"Physically, in practice over the last few weeks, I'm hitting the ball really well," Raducanu told Sky Sports ahead of her return.
"I think I'm a better tennis player than I was before the break. The people around the WTA, for example, everyone can see that I'm training and playing really really well.
"And physically, I'm pushing weights, pushing things that I wasn't doing before. In my body, I actually have confidence in it, which is really nice and tennis-wise I feel good too.
"It's just about now putting it into a match, which is obviously completely different to practice. I know that will come in time though - as long as the level is there and improving."
Caroline Wozniacki made a surprise return to tennis in August and will also be in action as she faces a tough first-round match against second seed Elina Svitolina. The winner plays Raducanu in the next round in Auckland.
Wozniacki, who lost to Gauff in the fourth round of the US Open as part of her comeback, initially retired at the start of 2020.
She decided to miss the remainder of the season but is back for Auckland and could be a dark horse, given her impressive performances in the summer.
It's not just players that are making comebacks, it's tournaments too. The Hong Kong Open last appeared on the schedule in 2002 and runs from January 1-7.
World No 5 Andrey Rublev is the biggest name in the draw, with Frances Tiafoe, Karen Khachanov and Christopher Eubanks some of the other notable players competing in Hong Kong.
The final will be live on Sky Sports on Sunday January 7.
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