As the Australian Open, one of four grand slam tennis tournaments, comes closer to its conclusion, it is the UCLA women’s tennis team that is taking notice in preparation for its season opener.

UCLA will open its season today at the Los Angeles Tennis Center when it hosts UC Irvine at 1:30 p.m.

One of the most prestigious tournaments in all of tennis, the Australian Open has not only captivated the UCLA women’s squad, but has also served as a source of information for the nation’s No. 4 team.

Freshman Robin Anderson, the No. 8 singles player in the country, is one of many who has followed the Grand Slam event closely.

“Every day since I’ve been here, I’ve been watching the Australian Open,” Anderson said of the tournament. “In the locker room, we have a TV, and we just sit there and watch the Australian Open all day.”

Anderson watched the tournament not only because of defending Australian Open champion Kim Clijsters, one of the freshman’s favorite professional tennis players, but also to gain insight into how the top players in the world play.

“Everybody has a really good ground stroke, but I guess one of the big keys in girls’ tennis is being able to hold your serve because everyone has really good returns,” Anderson said.

“I feel like when I watch tennis, and there are people that have that big serve or, in general, their serve is really good and they’re able to hold a lot, then I think they are some of the best players.”

Coach Stella Sampras Webster encourages her players’ interest in watching the professionals play.

Pete Sampras, the coach’s brother, is a former professional tennis player who won 14 grand slam titles, including two Australian Open titles.

“We encourage them to watch and learn and see what the pros are doing up there,” Sampras Webster said of her players’ interest in watching professional tennis.

“We definitely encourage them to, and some players do and other players don’t, so it’s really up to their preference.”

Sampras Webster is excited about the progress her team made through the fall and the way it performed at the Freeman Memorial Championships on Jan. 13-15. UCLA’s highly touted freshmen class, including Anderson and Skylar Morton, has made an immediate impact for Sampras Webster.

The No. 12 doubles pairing of Anderson and Morton won the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Regional doubles title playing in their first tournament together and made a run to the semifinals of the Freeman Memorial Championships in Las Vegas.

“I’ve been debating on whether to mix things up a little bit, but I think I may have them start and just see how they go,” Sampras Webster said of the team’s top-ranked pairing.

“They obviously had a great fall and have proven they can play at a high level and beat a lot of great teams, but now it is the season and I’ve got to look at what is going to be best for the team, so I’ll start them out and we’re just going to evaluate after each match and see.”

Anderson and Morton formed an instant chemistry together and have continued to build on their early season success.

“We have really good chemistry and it works really well,” Morton said of the doubles pairing. “We can talk to each other (on the court). I’m really excited to play against UCI, and I think we’ll do really well.”

Anderson believes that like the professional tennis players she has watched, the duo’s success relies on its ability to serve.

“Holding serve is one of our big things, because we’re both really good servers and that basically puts us up at the net to knock off the volley, especially Skylar because she is a really good net-player,” Anderson said of the pairing’s key to success.

“When we do get to the net, we’re both pretty good.”

In addition to Anderson and Morton, UCLA is expecting contributions from freshmen Kaitlin Ray and Chanelle Van Nguyen.

“We’ve got some new players on our team, and I expect them to be a little nervous for their first match as a Bruin so I expect some nerves, but I look forward to seeing our team compete,” Sampras Webster said.

Junior Pamela Montez and sophomore Courtney Dolehide are the No. 23 doubles team in the country. The two won the doubles title at the Freeman Memorial Championships and will be expected to help the team get the season started off right.

“Our upperclassmen and returners, I expect them to go out and just be excited to compete and start a new season. They know what to expect, and I expect them to go out and do what they do and just compete hard,” Sampras Webster said.

After Anderson, senior McCall Jones is UCLA’s highest-rated singles player at No. 62. Montez checks in at No. 70.

“The potential for this team is unbelievable, so I’m just excited to see the team grow and get better and better as we go through the season,” Sampras Webster said of the team.

“I think we have a good schedule, I think it’s a challenging schedule, and I think we’re going to learn a lot about our players and what kind of team we’re going to be.”