The 2022 Australian Open, the first Grand Slam of the year 2022, recorded the highest viewership in recent years with 22mn viewers across Sony Sports Network channels.

The tournament held in January 2022 began the year on a high note for tennis fans with Ashleigh Barty becoming the first Australian in 44 years to win a Grand Slam at home and Rafael Nadal for the record 21 Grand Slam singles titles with his victory at the 2022 Australian Open.

Sony Pictures Networks India had exclusive rights to the 2022 Australian Open in the country, as part of a long-term deal it signed with Tennis Australia, The Hindu reported.

Close to 22mn viewers watched the Grand Slam on TV. The top markets in terms of viewership for the 2022 Australian Open were Tamil Nadu, Pondicherry, Maharashtra, Goa, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

Further, the Men’s Singles final between Rafael Nadal and Daniil Medvedev, which lasted for nearly six hours, was the most-watched Men’s Grand Slam final to date with almost 5mn viewers.