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Australian Open may cancel qualifiers to get go-ahead for January, claims report


Players have been told to ‘expect’ the Australian Open to be delayed, although they will be permitted to practice in quarantine.

The Sydney Morning Herald report that a final decision on the details would be released ‘soon,’ although players need to prepared to travel with a very small team around them.

It is also claimed in the report that cancelling the qualifiers ‘remains a possibility,’ with the tournament stating one week later than currently planned on January 25.

“There are strict current limitations on the number of people allowed entry into Australia,” a note the report claims was sent to players by the ATP is quoted as saying.

“A possible (1) or two (2) week pushback of the Australian Open is still likely.

“Final determination on COVID-19 protocols, close contract procedures, and player support teams will be released soon.”

Victoria is currently on a streak of 28 days without any new coronavirus cases, and officials are obviously keen to prevent a fresh outbreak before their winter months.


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Michael Graham, Tennishead.net Editor, has been a professional sports journalist for his whole career and is especially passionate about tennis. He's been the Editor of Tennishead.net for over 5 years and loves watching live tennis by visiting as many tournaments as possible. Michael specialises in writing in-depth features about the ATP & WTA tours.