World Sport

Australian Open: Quarantining tennis players voice 'unequal practice' frustrations

January 17, 2021. Summarized by summa-bot.

Compression ratio: 22.4%. 1 min read.

Instead of training for up to five hours a day as they prepare for the Australian Open, 72 players find themselves unable to leave their hotel rooms under quarantine rules -- and a number of them are vocally expressing their frustrations.

(CNN)Instead of training for up to five hours a day as they prepare for the Australian Open, 72 players find themselves unable to leave their hotel rooms under quarantine rules -- and a number of them are vocally expressing their frustrations.

Covid-19 Quarantine Victoria Commissioner Emma Cassar said on Sunday that there had been a "small few" people -- including a player -- within the Australian Open quarantine hotels who were "testing our procedures. "

A fourth Covid-19 infection was recorded among the passengers on the two charter flights carrying players to Melbourne for the Australian Open in recent days, according to Cassar.

Later on Sunday, Australian Open organizers announced that another 25 players had been placed in quarantine hotels after a passenger on a Doha-Melbourne flight that arrived on Saturday had returned a positive Covid-19 test.

World No. 71 Sorana Cirstea said she understood the need to quarantine, but that being unable to train and practice would affect her ability to compete effectively at the Australian Open.

Belinda Bencic echoed Cirstea's observation that competitive balance at the Australian Open, which is the first grand slam of the tennis season, could be affected with quarantined players at a significant disadvantage.

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