Without a doubt Wimbledon is the premier tennis tournament in the world. It was the first held in 1877 and is the oldest Grand Slam. The inaugural U.S. Championships where held four years later, in 1881, followed by the French Open in 1891. Finally, the first Australian Open was held in 1905.
With the increased importance of China, India, and surrounding countries, a shift in power may be in place that favors the Australian Open. This shift would be driven by the increased population and television viewership in these countries and the fact that they are in the same time zone as Australia. 
This is illustrated by the following summary of viewership for select Grand Slam events.
U.S. Open
- 2012 US Open Men’s Finals – 16.2 million viewers watched Djokovic beat Murray (Source: AP).
- 2012 US Open Women’s Finals – 17.7 million viewers watched Serena Williams beat Vika Azarenka (Source: AP).
- 2002 US Open Women’s Finals – 20.1 million viewers watched Serena Williams beat Venus Williams (Source: AP)
French Open
- 2011 French Open Women’s Finals – 65 million viewers in China watched Li Na defeat Francesca Schiavone (Source: Xinhua)
- 2011 Australian Open Women’s Finals – 135 million viewers in China watched Li Na lose to Kim Clijsters. (Source: Sydney Morning Herald).
- 2013 Australian Open Women’s Finals – The projected viewership in China was estimated to be greater than 200 million for finals – Vika Azarenka beat Li Na. (Source: Sydney Morning Herald).
The increased prominence of the Asian market will ultimately impact the other Grand Slam events and the relative strength of tennis in the U.S. Consider the following questions:
Despite its tradition, will the Australian Open continue to reside “Down Under”, or will it be relocated to a more centrally located Asian-Pacific city?
- How much will the prestige and importance of the Australian Open increase given the size of the Asian market?
- Will other majors be added to accommodate tennis in Asia?
- How much will excitement over players such as Li Na increase the number of participants in China and around the world?
- How will increased viewership in Asia impact the role of the USTA in global tennis?
- With projected growth of the sport in Asia, will American players ever dominate the Grand Slams to the extent that the Williams sisters have?
- Because of the time zone difference, will the U.S. be able to capitalize off the projected increase in popularity of tennis in Asia.
It will be interesting to see what changes occur in the Grand Slams over the next ten years.