Australian Open stars cuddle up with local animals

Hyeon Chung would tumble out in the second round to Pierre-Hugues Herbert, but he didn't jet off before making some new friends:

A trip all the way to Australia wouldn't be complete without petting a fuzzy marsupial or holding a reptile. No matter what happens on court in Melbourne, a score of players will at least get to go home with a memorable photo.

Every year, a local zoo organizes the arrival of a kangaroo, echidna, wombat, snake and koala to meet the pros.

It's always a good time, as Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova found out:

Mihaela Buzarnescu got her mood boosted by a young kangaroo (she lost her opener to Venus Williams in three sets):

Hyeon Chung would tumble out in the second round to Pierre-Hugues Herbert, but he didn't jet off before making some new friends:

The Australian Open is the Happy Slam for many reasons, and perfect moments with local marsupials is one of them.

Kickoff each day of the 2019 Australian Open with Tennis Channel Live, reviewing the day's most important news and previewing the day's biggest matches. Watch LIVE at 6 p.m. ET.

Follow the Australian Open even closer with Tennis Channel PLUS. Go to BuyTCPlus.com and subscribe now!

The Australian Open is the Happy Slam for many reasons, and perfect moments with local marsupials is one of them.

Kickoff each day of the 2019 Australian Open with Tennis Channel Live, reviewing the day's most important news and previewing the day's biggest matches. Watch LIVE at 6 p.m. ET.

Follow the Australian Open even closer with Tennis Channel PLUS. Go to BuyTCPlus.com and subscribe now!