After the hassle getting it on, will Aussie fans snub their own Slam?
FEARS that locals will turn their backs on the Australian Open were heightened yesterday as its multiple build- up events degenerated into a shambles.
The final of one of the women’s tournaments was a bandoned altogether as the tactical-looking withdrawals of former champions continued amid a backlog of matches ahead of the start of the Open tomorrow.
A combination of factors are working against normally buoyant t i cket sales, not helped by a succession of stars claiming they are injured ahead of the main event.
For British men’s No 1 Dan Evans it has been full steam ahead, and this morning he was due to play the final of the Murray River Open, one of six tournaments laid on to try to get the players in the best shape possible for the next fortnight.
The 30-year-old Midlander was going for his first ATP title when he faced rising Canadian star Felix Auger-Aliassime. Evans saw off Frenchman Jeremy Chardy 6-2, 6-2 in the semi-final.
However, only 40 spectators
were in the stands to watch, in line with a build-up week marked by acres of empty seats around the huge Melbourne Park complex.
Tennis Australia will be hoping that normally sports-mad Melburnians are saving t hemselves for t he t wo- week extravaganza, which begins this evening at midnight UK time.
The host governing body have gone to huge lengths and expense to stage warm-ups for the players, and might be entitled to feel that no good deed goes unpunished.
Ye s t e r d a y ’ s schedule was affected by three former winners pulling out of their matches citing minor injuries: Serena Williams, Na o mi O s a k a and Vi c t o r i a Azarenka. Already two male exchampions, Stan Wawrinka and Rafael Nadal, had withdrawn from matches they were expected to play for the same reason.
One of the women’s events, the Grampians Trophy, was announced as having its two winning semifinalists share the title after delays caused by weather and Thursday’s mass Covid testing because of a positive case at a player hotel.
It quickly became known as the ‘Lockdown Trophy’ because it was specially laid on for the women who were forced to do 14 days’ full quarantine with no daily release. It will now find i ts place as an asterisked footnote in the history.
The Open last year attracted a massive 812,000 spectators over the fortnight, but there is no danger of t hat record being troubled this time. Understandable Covid caution and local resentment of previous player whingeing, when many Australians continue to be stranded overseas, are among the factors in play.
Tennis Australia boss Craig Tiley admitted that ticket sales have been facing headwinds.
‘They [tickets] go through periods where there are uncertainties like Thursday when they were flat,’ he said. ‘Next week when players start to play it will be great again. You guys are going to talk it up I know. I am pretty confident. It hasn’t been easy but nothing good comes easy.’