Australian Open 2012 TV Schedule: Few in America Will See Nadal vs. Djokovic

It won't even be morning in America when Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic take to the court at Rod Laver Arena to finish off the 2012 Australian Open.

The top two players in men's tennis are set to square off no earlier than 7:30 p.m. local time in Melbourne, which, given the 16-hour time difference, translates to 3:30 a.m. on the east coast and 12:30 a.m. on the west coast.

Hence, if you're a tennis fan in America who wants to see what's sure to be an excellent match, you'll have to either record it or stay up until the wee hours of the morning

Not that the powers-that-be at Melbourne Park should bother to change the schedule now, or even should have before, to better suit a U.S. audience. After all, American interest in tennis is waning, right along with the nation's presence (or lack thereof) among the tennis elite.

No American man has won a Grand Slam title since 2003, when Andy Roddick earned his first and only Major title at the US Open. Serena was the last Red-White-and-Blue racketeer of either gender to wave the flag on the final podium, after the Australian Open two years ago.

The U.S. contingent, thinner than it's been at any point in recent memory, had departed from Down Under by the end of the fourth round, when Serena fell to Ekaterina Makarova in two sets. John Isner was the last American man standing, and he didn't even get past the third round. Andy Roddick and Mardy Fish both bowed out in the second.

In other words, the U.S. wasn't exactly well-represented at the Aussie, to say the least, and hasn't been at any Grand Slam event for some time. Gone are the days when the Williams sisters faced off in finals with stunning regularity, when Roddick still seemed like a viable candidate to carry America's tennis torch into the foreseeable future.

And, not surprisingly, gone is much of the American fervor that once kept the sport buoyant stateside. Now, the appeal to the casual fan consists of promoting the brilliance of the "Trivalry"—Djokovic, Nadal and Roger Federer—and waiting to see which starlet from the former Eastern bloc will be the next to rise to the top of the women's field.

Until that changes, don't expect sports fans in the U.S. to get overly excited about tennis and, subsequently, don't expect to see broadcasters adjust the schedule of play to cater to the American time difference.

When the champions return so will the audience, and so will the top-tier tennis on TV that doesn't interfere with a good night's sleep.

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