There were numerous highlights for British Officiating during the two week long Australian Open in Melbourne, the first Grand Slam of the 2012 season.
In total 13 British officials were out in Melbourne including James Keothavong who chair umpired the men’s singles quarter-final between eventual champion Novak Djokovic and David Ferrer.
Graeme Jones and Jayne Littlewood were selected as Line Umpires for both the ladies semi-finals, and Matthew Davies was selected as a Team Leader for the men's singles semi-final match between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
In addition Ben Anderson, from Scotland, who was recently promoted to Silver Badge Chair Umpire, was given the opportunity to umpire on the main court at Melbourne Park, the Rod Laver Arena, on the middle Saturday of the tournament.
"It’s an honour and a privilege to have this opportunity to work on such an exciting and famous court. It was a good match that went smoothly and I had time to enjoy it too."
Read a blog on Ben Anderson and Kelly Thomson at the Australian Open
Finally Kelly Thomson was selected as a Line Umpire for the men’s singles final between Djokovic and Nadal which lasted a record five hours and 53 minutes.
"I was assigned a base for the match and was so nervous," said Thomson. "The line was hot out there but the experience was sensational and I'll never forget it. Both players played so well and the whole stadium was bouncing."
These achievements follow the recent promotion of Richard Haigh and Ben Anderson to Silver Badge Chair Umpire.
Congratulations to all British officials on thier continued success over the last few months.
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