TILEY’S DELIGHT AS STARS PLAY BALL OVER SCARE DOPING BAN BATTLE GOES ON

THE Happy Slam could so easily have become the Snappy Slam.

Thursday’s stunning COVID-19 scare, which immediately sent 507 players and their entourages into another urgent round of isolation, had the potential to blow up the Australian Open’s reputation as the fun and popular start to the tennis calendar.

For two weeks the world’s best tennis players fumed, privately and publicly, about the conditions they were being forced into in order to play in the first grand slam of the year.

But as news broke late on Wednesday of a positive test, linked to the tournament’s quarantine hotel and which threatened to send the tennis world into another tailspin, the only message emanating from players was “we’ll do whatever it takes” according to Tennis Australia boss Craig Tiley.

The Instagram page of American bad boy Tennys

Sandgren was noticeably quieter than it has been in recent weeks, where he’s used the platform to mock Tiley and Tennis Australia.

Instead, players swung into action in the early hours on Thursday – lining up for testing and returning for another day of isolation as they awaited results, forgoing a day of practice and match play which they so desperately crave three days out from the Open.

“I’ve found the players to be remarkable – they’ve been in 14 days of quarantine, some of them longer, and they took a little while to get used to that as we all know (with some of the comments), but the majority of the players have been fantastic,” Tiley said as he confirmed that the Open would go ahead as planned from Monday.

“We’ve had so many compliments when they’ve come out and said things to us that they’ve accepted and appreciated what the Melburnians have gone through. And now we’re in a position where, when we made the calls last night and this morning, they completely accepted it.

“They’ve been really good and are very appreciative of the opportunity to play.”

Even Spanish star Paula Badosa, pictured — the only player to have returned a positive test in Melbourne and who described the experience as “by far and away the worst of my career” — only had upbeat comments to add, after finally being released from lockdown.

UKRAINIAN tennis player Dayana Yastremska has vowed to keep fighting her doping ban despite again failing to have her provisional suspension lifted.

However, the 20-year-old’s hopes of playing in next week’s Australian Open are now over.

The International Tennis Federation announced the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) had dismissed Yastremska’s appeal of an independent tribunal’s decision to deny her appeal application.

Her provisional suspension was imposed on January 7.

The world No.29 travelled to Melbourne and was on one of the charter flights where there was a positive COVID-19 case, so she wasn’t able to leave her hotel room during her quarantine period.

“I sadly acknowledge the decision of the CAS to dismiss the expedited appeal to lift my provisional suspension,” Yastremska posted on social media. “I would like to underline that the decisions taken by the ITF Independent Tribunal and the CAS are only related to the provisional suspension.

“Now comes the time to defend myself about the matter of the dispute. My team and I are confident in our ability to prove my innocence as the ITF Independent Tribunal will hear from me, witnesses and experts.”

Yastremska revealed she would recompense Tennis Australia of all her flight, accommodation and related expenses.