Quarantine numbers on the rise

Six dozen players confined to hotel, but status could change

Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley has ruled out any change in the best-of-five set format for men’s singles matches at the season-opening tennis major as three more COVID-19 cases were reported among the international arrivals for the tournament.

There are 72 players now in hard quarantine and unable to practice because of nine active coronavirus cases among the incoming travelers to Melbourne. There was no immediate indication from health officials Tuesday that there would be any increase in the number of affected players.

In good news for players in lockdown, there were suggestions that some may be allowed to leave their rooms for practice before the 14-day hard quarantine period.

Victoria state Premier Daniel Andrews said some of the cases linked to the tournament will be reclassified as “non-infectious shedding,” potentially allowing changes for some players in lockdown.

“If you’ve got say 30 people who are deemed a close contact because they’ve been on a plane with a case, and the case is no longer an active case but a historic shedding, well that would release those people from that hard lockdown,” Andrews said.

Currently, tennis players in lockdown are trying to figure out ways to keep themselves fit within the confines of their Melbourne hotel rooms as they prepare.

Angelique Kerber, who won the Australian Open in 2016, spent her birthday in quarantine on Monday. At times in the past, she’s spent the day playing or preparing for matches in the later stages of the tournament.

This year, with the season-opening Grand Slam event not starting until Feb. 8 because of travel restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic, she had to settle for a message posted on social media by Australian Open organizers to mark the occasion.

Kerber is among the 72 players doing hard quarantine after multiple, positive coronavirus tests were returned from charter flights that brought almost 1,200 players, coaches, officials and media to Melbourne for what has previously been dubbed the Happy Slam.

If they remain quarantined, that means they won’t be allowed to leave their hotel rooms or practice for 14 days, creating a two-speed preparation period for the tournament. Others in less rigorous quarantine will be allowed to practice for five hours daily.

Those outdoor sessions started Monday in Melbourne. A smaller group of players who landed in the South Australia capital of Adelaide, including Serena Williams, Naomi Osaka, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal, are also allowed outside to practice under bio-secure protocols.

Players such as Yulia Putintseva and Belinda Bencic initially complained in social media posts about being ill informed of the quarantine rules but have found ways to practice indoors by hitting balls against walls and windows and setting up other unique sessions.

Some players have expressed anger at being classified as close contacts merely for being on board charter flights with people who later tested positive.

Responding to unconfirmed reports that Djokovic, an eight-time Australian Open champion, had proposed a list of ideas to change the quarantine conditions for players, Andrews said: “People are free to provide lists of demands, but the answer is no.”

Australia’s international borders are mostly closed, although there are exemptions in special circumstances.

All arrivals must do mandatory quarantine. Each of Australia’s states and territories has its own border and travel restrictions, and those can change on very short notice.

There’s been some debate locally about whether it’s right to stage a Grand Slam tournament bringing in people from parts of the world where the coronavirus is still taking a big toll. With that in mind, Australian health and government officials aren’t taking any chances.

So far, three people from a Los Angeles to Melbourne flight have tested positive since landing in Australia and have been transferred to a medi-hotel, along with Sylvain Bruneau, the coach of 2019 U.S. Open champion Bianca Andreescu, who flew in from Abu Dhabi, and another person who traveled from Doha, Qatar. All passengers on those three flights — including a total of 72 players — are in enforced hard quarantine. So far, no players have returned positive tests since arriving in Melbourne or Adelaide.

Players have been warned that breaching the rules could result in fines or being moved to a more secure quarantine complex with police stationed at their doors.

Victoria state COVID-19 quarantine commissioner Emma Cassar said over the weekend there would be “zero tolerance” for people trying to breach the rules.

“This is designed to make people safe,” said Cassar, who is also in charge of the state’s prisons. “We make no apologies for that.”

Being unable to leave their hotel rooms would mean the only workouts some players are able to have would be on exercise equipment in the rooms.

Tiley remains adamant the tournament will start Feb. 8, saying organizers would have to “manage an environment over the next 14 days for those who won’t be able to practice.”