Australian Open 2022 - Unvaccinated players 'unlikely' to be allowed to play in the Grand Slam

ByEurosport

Published 19/10/2021 at 08:46 GMT

Victoria Premier Daniel Andrews: "[The virus] doesn't care what your tennis ranking is, or how many Grand Slams you've won. It's completely irrelevant. You need to be vaccinated to keep yourself safe and to keep others safe." It was recently reported that vaccination rates on the ATP Tour are 65 per cent while the WTA Tour is 60 per cent.

Tennis players who have not been vaccinated against Covid-19 are unlikely to be able to enter Australia to compete at the Australian Open, Victoria Premier Daniel Andrews has warned.

The 2021 tournament was pushed back by three weeks in February and players quarantined in a hotel for a fortnight on arrival into the country.

A 14-day hotel quarantine process for players is unlikely to be the case for the 2022 edition. Australian prime minister Scott Morrison announced last week that international travel to and from the country would resume from November 1 for fully vaccinated citizens and permanent residents, but emphasised “no decision to allow other visa holders” has been made.

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The Australian Grand Slam is due to start in Melbourne, Victoria, on January 17 and the leader of the state in which the tournament is held, Daniel Andrews, has warned players they may struggle to obtain visas if they are not fully vaccinated.

“I don't think an unvaccinated tennis player is going to get a visa to come into this country," the Victoria Premier said.

"If they did get a visa they'd probably have to quarantine for a couple of weeks.

"If I'm wrong I'm sure the federal government will let you know.

[The virus] doesn't care what your tennis ranking is, or how many Grand Slams you've won. It's completely irrelevant. You need to be vaccinated to keep yourself safe and to keep others safe.

Reigning men’s champion and world number one Novak Djokovic has refused to reveal whether he had been fully vaccinated or not.

The 20-time Grand Slam winner said it was "a private matter and an inappropriate inquiry" in an interview with Serbian publication Blic.

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