Australian Open 2023 guide: Players, top seeds, prize money and how to watch

Last year’s Australian Open was one tennis will never forget. The action started at the airport with Novak Djokovic controversially deported by the Australian Government over his vaccination status before the Open even began.

Homegrown hero Ash Barty became the first Aussie to win the Open women's singles title in 44 years, and then stunned the world by retiring two months later. With the Djoker deported, the men’s single finals saw Spanish superpower Rafael Nadal beat Russia’s Daniil Medvedev in an epic five-set comeback. Meanwhile, Aussie wheelchair champ Dylan Alcott played his last game ever, sadly bowing out to victor Sam Schröder in the final.

AUS OPEN PARTNERS: From Rafa Nadal's wife to Nick Kyrgios' girlfriend

HUGE: Ash Barty at centre of comeback call after Naomi Osaka news

Can 2023 top it for highlights and drama? We’ll have to wait and see, but for now here’s everything you need to know about the grand slam.

When does the Australian Open start?

The first grand slam of 2023 begins on Monday, January 16 at Melbourne Park and ends on Sunday, January 29. Here’s the full list of categories and when they kick off:

• Men's and Women's Singles - January 16-29

• Men's and Women's Doubles - January 18-28

• Mixed Doubles - January 19-29

• Men's, Women’s and Quad Wheelchair Singles - January 24-28

• Men's, Women’s and Quad Wheelchair Doubles - January 25-28

How to watch and stream the Australian Open on TV

Channel Nine and sister channel 9Gem have exclusive TV rights and will broadcast key matches across 276 hours of coverage. Nine’s digital platform 9Now will show all games, with fans able to stream on-demand at any time on any device in full HD. Users just need to sign up for free to get in on the action.

Yahoo Sport Australia will also be covering all the key moments and controversy as it happens.

Who won the Australian Open last year?

These players took home the trophy in 2022:

• Men’s Singles: Rafael Nadal

• Women’s Singles: Ash Barty

• Men's Doubles: Nick Kyrgios and Thanasi Kokkinakis

• Women's Doubles: Barbora Krejčíková and Kateřina Siniaková

• Mixed Doubles: Kristina Mladenovic and Ivan Dodig

• Men's Wheelchair Singles: Shingo Kunieda

• Women's Wheelchair Singles: Diede de Groot

• Quad Wheelchair Singles: Sam Schröder

• Men's Wheelchair Doubles: Alfie Hewett and Gordon Reid

• Women's Wheelchair Doubles: Diede de Groot and Aniek van Koot

• Quad Wheelchair Doubles: Andy Lapthorne and David Wagner

What’s the prize money for the Australian Open?

This year’s prize pool is deeper than ever with a whopping $76.5m paid out to players (up 3.4 per cent from 2022). Singles champions will pocket $2.975 million each while the men’s and women’s doubles winners land $695,000 per team. Singles players score $106,250 just for making the first round.

Here's the full prize money list via the Open's official site.

Who are the top seeds for the Australian Open 2023?

The tournament’s seedings were announced this week - see the top 10 contenders below. Leading the Aussie charge, Nick Kyrgios - who made the Wimbledon final last July - is the 19th seed while Alex de Minaur comes in at 22.

Australia's best hope in the women’s draw, Ajla Tomljanovic arrowly missed out on one of the top-32 seeding spots.

Men’s Top 10 Seeds

1. Rafael Nadal (Spain)

2. Casper Rudd (Norway)

3. Stefanos Tsitsipas (Greece)

4. Novak Djokovic (Serbia)

5. Andrey Rublev (Russia)

6. Felix Auger-Aliassime (Canada)

7. Daniil Medvedev (Russia)

8. Taylor Fritz (USA)

9. Holger Rune (Denmark)

10. Hubert Hurkacz (Poland)

Women’s Top 10 Seeds

1. Iga Swiatek (Poland)

2. Ons Jabeur (Tunisia)

3. Jessica Pegula (USA)

4. Caroline Garcia (France)

5. Aryna Sabalenka (Russia)

6. Maria Sakkari (Greece)

7. CocoGauff (USA)

8. Daria Kasatkina

9. Veronika Kudermetova

10. Madison Keys (USA)

Visit the Aus Open official site for the full seeding list.

Which big stars will miss this year’s Australian Open?

Ash Barty is now retired and prepping for a whole new game - parenthood - with Barty recently announcing she’s pregnant. Tennis legends Roger Federer and Serena Williams both retired last year, while 19-year-old World No.1 Carlos Alcaraz and wildcard Venus Williams have both pulled out due to injury.

Simon Halep's suspension after failing a doping test counts her out while in happier news, Naomi Osaka has a great reason to skip the Open - the two-time Aus Open champ's just revealed she’s also pregnant. Aussie Bernard Tomic, known these days for his off-field antics as much as his tennis, missed out on a wildcard into qualifying - marking the first time in 15 years that he won't take part in some shape or form.

Click here to sign up to our newsletter for all the latest and breaking stories from Australia and around the world.