Unfortunately for the Seven Network and many sports nuts, the final of the men’s Australian tennis titles will be played tonight when Novak Djokovic meets Roger Federer in one of the semi-finals. Normally that would be a high rating final on Sunday night, but such was the draw, and Federer’s small dip in the rankings, that their semi-final meeting was always on the cards if they won their way through to this round.

Last night’s TV though was boring, dull. The tennis on Seven was what I called Identikit Tennis – whack, whack, whack, draw a figure – it could have been anyone playing outside of the top two or three men. The women were consigned to the lower viewing day matches yesterday. The final two men’s quarter finals were hardly standouts (Andy Murray is not going to leave you wanting more for the grace and power of his game, unlike Federer or Djokovic).

As a result news and current affairs programs topped the night, which tells you a lot about what the rest of the night’s offerings were like – boring, dull. Who ‘won’ the night, well I reckon even Seven would be slow to claim its victory in the main channels. Nothing zinged viewers, at all.

Tony Robinson’s look at the real wild west story in the US on SBS ONE stood out 594,000 national viewers, including 404,000 in the metros. It is a grim ‘reality’ story that is a necessary antidote to all the glamourising of the rape, pillage, robbery and mass murders that saw ’The West won”  and America’s ‘Manifest Destiny’ realised.

Network channel share:

  1. Nine (28.4%)
  2. Seven (28.0%)
  3. Ten (18.7%)
  4. ABC (15.4%)
  5. SBS (9.5%)

Network main channels:

  1. Seven (21.3%)
  2. Nine (19.8%)
  3. Ten (13.9%)
  4. ABC (10.0%)
  5. SBS ONE (6.6%)

Top 5 digital channels: 

  1. 7TWO (3.8%)
  2. ABC 2 (3.3%)
  3. Eleven (3.2%)
  4. GO (3.1%)
  5. 7mate (3.0%)

Top 10 national programs:

  1. Nine News — 1.577 million
  2. Seven News — 1.239 million
  3. ABC News — 1.210 million
  4. Nine News 6.30 — 1.103 million
  5. A Current Affair (Nine) — 1.032 million
  6. Tennis: Australian Open Night 10 (Seven) — 966,000
  7. Seven News/ Today Tonight — 929,000
  8. 7.30 Summer (ABC) — 906,000
  9. Hot Seat (Nine) — 864,000
  10. Movie: Red 2 (Ten) — 814,000

Top metro programs:

  1. Nine News — 1.156 million
  2. Nine News 6.30 — 1.107 million

Losers: The usual cast, viewers, except for those who really like tennis.Metro news and current affairs:

  1. Nine News — 1.156 million
  2. Nine News 6.30 — 1.107 million
  3. Seven News — 978,000
  4. Seven News/Today Tonight — 929,000
  5. A Current Affair (Nine) – 856,000
  6. 7pm ABC News – 850,000
  7. 7.30 Summer (ABC) — 629,000
  8. The Project 7pm (Ten) — 574,000
  9. Ten Eyewitness News —498,000
  10. The Project 6.30pm (Ten) — 426,000

Morning TV:

  1. Sunrise (Seven) – 320,000
  2. Today (Nine) – 282,000
  3. Mornings – Summer (Nine) — 144,000
  4. News Breakfast (ABC 1,  77,000 + 58,000 on News 24) — 135,000
  5. Studio 10 (Ten) — 113,000

Top five pay TV channels:

  1. TVHITS  (2.7%)
  2. Fox 8  (2.5%)
  3. UKTV (1.9%)
  4. LifeStyle, Fox Classics (1.8%)

Top five pay TV programs:

  1. The Flash (Fox8) — 82,000
  2. Real Housewives of Beverley Hills  (Arena) — 76,000
  3. Highway Patrol (Fox8) — 65,000
  4. Tales of Friendship (Disney Jr) — 61,000
  5. Eastenders (UKTV) — 57,000

*Data © OzTAM Pty Limited 2016. The data may not be reproduced, published or communicated (electronically or in hard copy) in whole or in part, without the prior written consent of OzTAM. (All shares on the basis of combined overnight 6pm to midnight all people.) and network reports.