With up to 15 hours a day of live match play, it's no wonder the commentators at Channel Seven, the Australian broadcaster, are a little weary by day 13, the women's finals.

Seven's Basil Zempilas knows it better than most, after mixing up Michael Jackson, the singer, and Michael Jordan, the basketballer, when Serena Williams had broken Venus Williams late in the second set.

Zempilas was commenting on the special Nike shoes that the sportswear label had made for Serena Williams in the event she defeated her sister and earned her 23rd grand slam.

The shoes are embossed with the number 23, worn by Jordan when he played for the Chicago Bulls and the USA basketball team.

But Zempilas told viewers the shoes, and the number 23, represented "Michael Jackson".

Some fans were left wondering – not for the first time in the tournament – why veteran Bruce McAvaney was on leave during the tournament.

Zempilas, who has enjoyed an elevated role in the Australian Open, was calling the women's final with former professional player Sam Smith.