Just days after announcing a new plan to move all tournaments to the state of Victoria, there are rumors that the Aussie summer is in jeopardy.
This weekend we learned that tournaments in Adelaide, Perth, Brisbane, Canberra and Sydney were set to shift to Victoria, the Australian territory that is home to Melbourne and the Australian Open, but Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews quickly rebuffed the scenario, saying that the deal, which would have been a boon for the Australian Open and for the players, wasn’t a done deal.
Tournaments like the Brisbane International and Hobart International had already announced their cancellation, making matters more complicated, and on Monday the situation appears to have worsened.
Tennis Channel reported that Victoria will not let tennis players into the territory in December, which means that tournaments are under threat again. Most players are planning to arrive in Australia on December 15th in order to quarantine for two weeks before tournaments start at the beginning of January.
Now, it’s not clear when they can arrive.
Andrews seems committed to making things work with Tennis Australia, but admits he was taken aback at what he deems to be premature reporting on the movement of all tournaments to Victoria.
“There was some reporting, and I’m not being critical of the reporting, but there was some reporting earlier in the week that this was all some sort of done deal, that there would be lead-up tournaments and the Australian Open and the whole thing was finalised,” he said. “I just want to make the point this is incredibly complex. It has to be done safely, it has to be done properly, so that reporting was not accurate.
“We are working very, very closely with Tennis Australia. They are working with all of their partners, we’re confident that we’ll finish up with an Australian Open. It’s a very important event, but there’s a lot of work to be done to make sure that’s as safe as possible, not just for the broader Victorian community from a public health point of view, but it’s got to be safe for those who are involved in the event, staff who work there.
The ATP is aware of the situation and has circulated a memo to warn players that their travel plans may need to change if Australia restricts entry into the country.