Australian Open probably a week or two later
The signs are growing that the Australian Open in 2021 will take place later than originally planned.
by SID / red
last edit: Nov 25, 2020, 08:35 am
For the Australian Open, there is more and more a shift of one to two weeks. Such a schedule is now "most likely," said Martin Pakula, Minister of Sports for the state of Victoria. Originally the Grand Slam tournament was supposed to start on January 18th in Melbourne.
"I still think that it is much more likely that there will be a shorter delay than a longer delay," said Pakula after "very complex negotiations". He remains confident that the tournament can start at the beginning of the year.
Kenin and Djokovic as defending champions
Because of the corona crisis, Australia has been virtually isolated from the rest of the world for almost eight months, it is questionable how the quarantine regulation will be dealt with for the participants. Craig Tiley, head of the Australian Open, had originally suggested that the players should be in Australia from mid-December. However, this plan was rejected by the state of Victoria.
The defending champions will be Sofia Kenin, who won her first major title in the final against Garbine Muguruza in early 2020, and record winner Novak Djokovic, who defeated Dominic Thiem in five sets, at the start.