Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley says plans for the tournament to take place in Melbourne are still intact after a national broadcaster reported that officials could be forced to move the event abroad next year.
ABC Sport has claimed that the Grand Slam could be forced to move outside of the country following a recent decision by the government to keep their current border restrictions until the middle of next year. Should this be the case, players travelling to the Grand Slam next January will be required to go through quarantine once again upon arrival. Prompting fears there could be a revolt from some on the Tour who would not be prepared to go into quarantine again.
The state broadcaster claims Dubai and Doha are two cities that are currently being considered as a potential host for the event if it is forced to move to another country. The two countries held the qualifying draws for the tournament earlier this year. ABC reports that this is one of a series of plans being considered by Tennis Australia.
However, Tiley has insisted that his team will ‘make it work’ so that the Australian Open takes place at its usual location and during January. The tournament date was delayed this season due to the quarantine.
“We’re going to be here in Melbourne, we are going to make it work, it’s going to be in January,” said Tiley.
“We’re going to find a way to get the players here who are currently travelling the world in a bubble.
“We are the only country where quarantine is required. We’ve got a find a way to manage that and we will.”
There are still eight months before the Australian Open takes place but Tiley has already admitted that they face a tough time ahead given the government ruling. Although he believes overseeing this year’s event has helped him.
“I learned a lot every single day about managing uncertainty,” he said.
“The two enemies, mass gatherings and international travel, COVID don’t allow those two things to happen, and those are the pillars of our success.
“Being able to get around that was a challenge.
“There’s lots of speculation about 2022, and it’s same journey we are going to go on. It’s going to be a ride.
“We felt like we climbed Mount Everest, and unfortunately now we’ve found ourselves back at base camp.
“But the one positive thing is that we at least have a path because we have done it once.”
The hosting of the event is crucial for Tennis Australia with it generating an estimated AUS$300 million for the national economy. Should all go to plan the 2022 tournament will get underway on January 17th.
