Will the Australian Open be played? "Absolutely safe," says its director

Outside a hotel near St. Kilda beach, a long line of tennis players, coaches and physios lined up early this Thursday to undergo the PCR required by the authorities of the state of Victoria, after yesterday the alarm went off in Melbourne.

The government reported that an employee of one of the three hotels in which the players and their teams had stayed during the quarantine they had to do upon arrival in the country had tested positive, so security protocol was applied immediately. : 557 professionals (507 tennis players and 50 companions) were isolated.

• Australia multiplies the alarm signal

Meanwhile, the six tournaments that had been contested this week were suspended and the rumor about a possible cancellation

began to circulate, just five days before the start of the first

of the season.

Faced with this situation, the event director, Criag Tiley, stepped out.

"We are absolutely sure that the tournament will go ahead," he said.

“We hope the results are negative and we can continue playing tomorrow [Friday], as planned,” continued the Australian manager;

"They are considered casual contacts, and we have been informed that the probability of any of them testing positive is really low."

Tiley also anticipated that the draw for the main draw was postponed one day, to Friday, and that a series of measures have been agreed with the ATP and the WTA (reducing sets and

, among others) to resume activity and to be able to finish the preparatory tournaments before Sunday;

Among them, the ATP Cup, in which Spain should have measured this Thursday with Greece.

All the team members passed the tests and it will finally be played this Thursday at 00.00 (#Vamos), Spanish time.

Of course, without Rafael Nadal, who discarded himself by continuing with back discomfort.

The winner of 20 grand did not have to isolate himself, since he completed the quarantine in Adelaide and in Melbourne he has his headquarters at the Crown Towers hotel.

The professionals will return to the courts to play a total of 67 games: 58 games between the two ATP 250 and the three WTA 500, and another nine on the third day of the ATP Cup league.

Meanwhile, the forecasts announce rain in the city these days, although according to Tiyley, "the weather will be perfect for the next two weeks."

The tennis players who spent the 14-day quarantine at the Grand Hyatt, meanwhile, were ordered from nine in the morning where the organization had located them, and in the following hours some of them were confirming the negatives.

"All plans go ahead," stressed the president, who also said that it is very unlikely that the incident will force a reduction in the initial estimated capacity, 50% less than usual.

In other words, about 30,000 people are expected to pass through Melbourne Park every day in the first rounds, and 25,000 from the quarterfinals.

All of them must wear masks and the players, Tiley said, will not be subjected to additional tests once they have passed the tests this Thursday, "except if they have any type of symptoms."

In parallel, the Prime Minister of Victoria, Daniel Andrews, explained that there is no guarantee when it comes to the coronavirus ("things can change ..."), but that a priori the Open should not be affected.

Of course, in the same way he anticipated that he is prepared to "make difficult decisions" if he must do so and that the opinion of public health experts will prevail over all things.

In this sense, the state of Victoria has tightened restrictions: domestic visits are limited to 15 people (previously there were 30), citizens will have to wear masks in public spaces (previously only in transport and shopping centers) and a 75% attendance at work offices (previously 50%).