A number of the world's top tennis stars, including Serena Williams, Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal, have agreed to play in an exhibition match to raise funds for Australia's bushfire relief. The trio, who have 62 grand slam titles between them, will be joined by Naomi Osaka, Caroline Wozniacki, Nick Kyrgios and Stefanos Tsitsipas, it was confirmed on Wednesday.
Scheduled to take place on January 15 at Melbourne Park's Rod Laver Arena, the Australian Open Rally for Relief will donate proceeds from ticket sales -- priced at $37 (54 AUSD) for adults and $24 (35 AUSD) for concessions -- to the bushfire relief efforts.
At least 24 people have been killed by the fires in Australia. Nearly 18 million acres of land have been burned as the country faces its worst blazes in decades.
"This unprecedented bushfire crisis is devastating people, properties, communities, livestock and animals across the country and our hearts go out to all those affected," said Tennis Australia CEO Craig Tiley in a statement.
"The response from the tennis community -- our players, clubs, partners and international tennis bodies -- has been overwhelming and it's wonderful to see everyone pull together.
The players are keen to be involved -- we've had a tremendous response from them and they are keen to help."
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