Australian Open staying in Melbourne in 2022, says match director Craig Tiley

Australian Open match director Craig Tiley stated he was ready to “climb Mount Everest” once more to maintain the Grand Slam at Melbourne Park subsequent 12 months after a report stated it may need to be moved.
State broadcaster ABC reported on Monday a authorities forecast that Australia’s borders can be closed till mid-2022 might drive the relocation of the match to Dubai or Doha as gamers wouldn’t be ready to bear quarantine once more.
Tiley, who oversaw the strict 14-day quarantine of gamers and officers to get this 12 months’s Australian Open performed towards large odds, stated there have been no plans to relocate the 2022 match.
“We’re going to be here in Melbourne, we are going to make it work, it’s going to be in January,” the Tennis Australia chief government advised native media on Monday.
“We’re going to find a way to get the players here who are currently travelling the world in a bubble.”We are the one nation the place quarantine is required. We’ve received a discover a strategy to handle that and we are going to.”
Australia has been comparatively profitable in containing COVID-19 and the federal government sees strict restrictions on those that are in a position to enter the nation as a key a part of their technique.
Tiley stated he had discovered so much about how one can plan a match throughout a pandemic earlier this 12 months, when the Australian Open was efficiently accomplished in entrance of decreased, and typically no, spectators.
“The two enemies, mass gatherings and international travel, COVID doesn’t allow those two things to happen, and those are the pillars of our success,” the South African added.”Being in a position to get round that was a problem.
There’s plenty of hypothesis about 2022, and it’s the identical journey we’re going to go on. It’s going to be a journey. “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.”