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https://scmp.com/sport/tennis/article/3120491/australian-open-boss-absolutely-confident-tournament-will-go-ahead
Sport/ Tennis

Australian Open boss ‘absolutely confident’ tournament will go ahead despite Covid-19 case and hundreds in isolation

  • Craig Tiley says plans have not changed for next week’s start and the tournament, already delayed by three weeks, will go ahead ‘as scheduled’
  • A positive test at the designated quarantine hotel caused hundreds to isolate, including Tsitsipas and Wawrinka
Tennis player Wang Qiang waits in line for a Covid-19 test at the View Hotel in Melbourne days before the Australian Open is expected to start. Photo: AAP Image/James Ross NO ARCHIVING

Australian Open chief Craig Tiley said he was “absolutely confident” the tournament would start next week despite a fresh coronavirus case that halted warm-up tournaments and forced hundreds of players and officials into isolation on Thursday.

The case, a worker at one of the Melbourne tournament’s designated quarantine hotels, has caused yet more chaos before the year’s first tennis grand slam, which has already been delayed three weeks over coronavirus problems.

But Tiley said the Australian Open would start as scheduled on Monday, and that there were no plans to cancel. Play was suspended at six warm-up tournaments in Melbourne on Thursday.

“We’re absolutely confident the Australian Open will go ahead,” Tiley said. “The plan is to continue to play tomorrow as planned. If we have to go through this again, we’ll go through this again. We have three-and-a-half weeks of tennis to play and we’ll go in as scheduled.”

Tennis players and officials wait in line to receive Covid-19 tests at the View Hotel in Melbourne on Thursday. Photo: AAP Image/James Ross
Tennis players and officials wait in line to receive Covid-19 tests at the View Hotel in Melbourne on Thursday. Photo: AAP Image/James Ross

The incident highlights the difficulty of holding large-scale, international sports events during the pandemic, as officials wrestle over how to safely hold this year’s Tokyo Olympics.

Health officials insisted the risk to players and officials, who queued up for coronavirus tests on Thursday, was “low”.

Craig Tiley, CEO of Tennis Australia, speaks to media during a press conference. Photo: Reuters
Craig Tiley, CEO of Tennis Australia, speaks to media during a press conference. Photo: Reuters

Victoria state Health Minister Martin Foley said the 520 people ordered to isolate and get tested were casual contacts, stressing “we are not as concerned about them”.

“But out of an abundance of caution we want to ensure we leave no stone unturned in how we follow up and deal with anybody who may have had contact with this individual,” he said.

Dedicated facilities were set up to ensure they all get tested quickly, with results often returned within 24 hours.

Tennis player Wang Yafan of China receives directions after a Covid-19 coronavirus test at her hotel in Melbourne. Photo: AFP
Tennis player Wang Yafan of China receives directions after a Covid-19 coronavirus test at her hotel in Melbourne. Photo: AFP

The Australian Open draw, which was scheduled to take place on Thursday, has been pushed back by a day.

Stefanos Tsitsipas and Stan Wawrinka were reportedly among those affected by the mini-lockdown although the biggest names of the game, including Serena Williams, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal, were not among those isolated as they spent their mandatory 14-day quarantine in Adelaide.