One case of COVID-19 among those in quarantine ahead of the Australian Open has been reclassified, local health officials said on Sunday, leaving nine active cases in the group of players and support staff isolating in Melbourne hotels. The grand-slam tournament is set to begin from 8th February and the final would be played on 23rd February.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Update: New <a >#AusOpen</a> lead-in schedule to help give the 72 players in 14-day quarantine lockdown the best possible preparation and training opportunities... <a >https://t.co/OhlKPVUduS</a> <a >pic.twitter.com/jOMHyz75mw</a></p>— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) <a >January 24, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Victoria, Australia’s second most-populous state, recorded its 17th day without any new local infections on Saturday as officials focus on keeping the public separated from staff and players here for the Grand Slam tournament. As many as 72 players have been confined to their hotel rooms for two weeks upon arrival and unable to train for the Feb. 8-21 event after passengers on three charter flights tested positive. Although, many players are allowed to train for four-five hours in a day. This lockdown led to some frustrated complaints by the players but the Victoria state authorities have asked the players to cooperate with the authorities as they have been going through one of the strictest lockdown. The state didn’t record any new cases of local transmission for straight 18 days.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">9 positive Covid cases in AUS Open Hotel Quarantine, out of a total of 970 people.<br><br>Pretty sure I heard Vic CHO say they expect 1% of international arrivals to test positive.<a >https://t.co/p1JJShr4Bu</a></p>— Dean Rosario (@DeanRosario) <a >January 24, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Four players were initially reported, but only one player has tested positive for the virus. Spanish player Paula Badosa has tested positive for the virus. Badosa's quarantine period restarted when the test result was confirmed which means that the 23-year-old will have almost no time to prepare for the Feb. 8 start of the Australian Open. Spanish tennis federation had earlier complained about players in quarantine. They apologized for this complaint to Tennis Australia after Badosa testing positive.
Meanwhile, star players including Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Serena Williams have already arrived in Australia. Sofia Kenin had won the women’s grand slam in 2020 while Novak Djokovic was the men’s Champion. It will be interesting to see whether Nadal surpasses Federer’s record of winning 20 grand slams.