Finn Broadbent has many fond Australian Open memories. From watching courtside as his mentors Dylan Alcott and Heath Davidson claimed doubles titles, to witnessing his all-time favourite Roger Federer in action.<\/p>\n
The 22-year-old is now set to experience the tournament as a competitor for the first time, after being awarded a wildcard into the quad wheelchair competition this summer.<\/p>\n
“Getting the wildcard was sort of a shock at first, but once it sunk in, it was really cool,” Broadbent told tennis.com.au<\/em>.<\/p>\n “It\u2019s kind of a reward for all the hard work over the years.”<\/p>\n Broadbent, a former top-10 junior, lives in Melbourne and trains regularly at Melbourne Park.<\/p>\n “I\u2019m feeling pretty good to be honest,” he said ahead of his making his tournament debut.<\/p>\n “It\u2019s pretty familiar. I\u2019ve come here for many years as a spectator, and I hit at these courts four or five times a week.<\/p>\n “I\u2019m looking forward to it. I haven\u2019t played in front of many crowds before, so I could get a bit nervous, but I\u2019m really excited.”<\/p>\n The talented athlete hopes to draw on his experience representing Hawthorn in the Victorian Wheelchair Football League to handle any extra nerves.<\/p>\n “Last year was my first full season and I really enjoyed that. There\u2019s a lot of contact and I love the competitiveness as well,” he said about playing wheelchair football.<\/p>\n “I\u2019ll be able to lean on a couple of those matches last year in terms of experience in front of crowds, which is nice.”<\/p>\n Broadbent, who graduated with a Bachelor of Business at Deakin University last year, plans to make tennis his full-time focus in 2024.<\/p>\n It follows his recent classification in the quad wheelchair division.<\/p>\n “I\u2019d never actually been classified and I was struggling a bit in the open because they are all just so strong,” he said.<\/p>\n “I wasn’t really going to make it that category, but now I’m really enjoying the competition.<\/p>\n “Getting classified in the quads four or five months ago was when I put the foot down and really trained hard.<\/p>\n “It\u2019s a Paralympic year, so there are a lot of opportunities on offer, but you\u2019ve got to put in the groundwork first.”<\/p>\n Currently ranked world No.48 in his division, Broadbent has a busy schedule ahead with tournaments in Thailand, Malaysia and potentially Turkey in coming months.<\/p>\n But for now, his focus is on the Australian Open and a showdown with world No.9 Robert Shaw in the opening round tomorrow.<\/p>\n > VIEW: Australian Open 2024 quad wheelchair singles draw<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n It will be Broadbent’s first meeting with the 34-year-old Canadian.<\/p>\n “Getting the wildcard is awesome, I\u2019ve just got to soak it all in,” he said.<\/p>\n “I don\u2019t really have expectations, because as the wildcard you\u2019re the underdog, so I\u2019m just going to give it a crack.”<\/p>\n Broadbent will also contest the quad wheelchair doubles competition<\/a> alongside Brit Gregory Slade. They face the second seeds, Davidson and Shaw, in the first round.<\/p>\n > BUY NOW: Australian Open 2024 tickets<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n