Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley admits players may not accept strict quarantine rules ahead of the Grand Slam early next year; the Australian Formula One Grand Prix and MotoGP were cancelled for the second successive year
Wednesday 7 July 2021 11:08, UK
Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley said players would be unwilling to go through two weeks of hotel quarantine ahead of next year's Grand Slam.
The Australian Formula One Grand Prix and MotoGP, both due to take place in the state of Victoria, were cancelled for the second successive year because of the logistical problems caused by the border controls.
But with tennis players playing at tournaments in other countries without such strict restrictions asking them to undergo strict quarantine before next January's Australian Open would be "a tough ask".
"If the conditions are as they are today, we may not be able to get the players to accept them."
"Whether or not the playing group accepts that remains to be seen," Tiley told Melbourne's 3AW radio.
"At this point, in our initial conversations with them, that's not something they're going to be open to, simply because that's not what they're currently doing around the world.
"If the conditions are as they are today, we may not be able to get the players to accept them."
All players arriving in Australia for the tournament earlier this year had to spend 14 days in quarantine before they were allowed out to play, and those requirements, designed to keep the new coronavirus out of the country, remain in place.
Tiley said the professional tours had agreed to hold off on agreeing their 2022 schedules until the end of September to allow Australian Open organisers to get an indication from government of what the entry requirements might be in January.
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