Tennis-Australian Open adds extra day to minimise late finishes

FILE PHOTO:Tennis - Australian Open - Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Australia - January 20, 2023 General view during the second round match between Australia's Thanasi Kokkinakis and Britain's Andy Murray REUTERS/Carl Recine/File Photo

(Reuters) - The Australian Open will switch to a Sunday start and be held over 15 days instead of 14 for the first time next year in a bid to avoid night matches finishing in the early hours of the morning, organisers said.

Night session matches that stretch into the early hours of the following morning are common at the season's first Grand Slam, with Briton Andy Murray describing his 4:05 a.m. finish in a game against Thanasi Kokkinakis this year as a "farce".