Panic has yet to end, as the new coronavirus pandemic continues to grow despite all measures taken by everyone. This year’s tennis calendar was suspended after the viral disease quickly turned into a global pandemic. And it seems that the 2021 season could also be interrupted because of it. According to reports, Qantas has suspended all its international flights until March. As a result, doubts arise about the future of next season’s first Australian Grand Slam Open 2021.
According to Daily Mail, a Qantas spokesman reported that all international and sales flights from Australia have been removed until further notice due to the new coronavirus pandemic. With Qantas making such a big decision to prevent further spread of the virus, other Australia-based air service providers are also likely to follow suit. And that happens, the Australian Open, which usually occurs every year between January and February, could be threatened with cancellation.
The Australian Open is in doubt
Australia, as we speak, has just over 10,487 positive cases of COVID-19. Of these, only around 2500 are active. The country has managed the crisis well and has avoided any lethal outbreak, unlike other large countries. In the midst of such positivity, the country’s government would surely be eager to maintain restrictions to ensure that the disease is completely eradicated. It is understood that Qantas’ decision is more of a kind of government decree.
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Australia tennis fans expect to see their favorite athletes in action next year in Melbourne. However, with Qantas’ latest decision to withdraw its international flights from its website, doubts arose about the future of the tournament. If no international flight is allowed to land in Australia, how can foreign players travel to that country?
It is not possible to organize a Grand Slam without involving the best players from all over the world. In such a case, the organizers of the Australian Open could soon declare the cancellation of their next season. However, there are still many months before something concrete can be decided. Until then, we just have to see how tennis returns to its normal schedule.
The interrupted tennis calendar for 2020 could return to normal
Recently, the US Open has announced that they will hold their tournament in New York in August, despite the growing number of positive COVID-19 cases in the country. Most surprisingly, the US Open headquarters is itself a coronavirus hotspot in the country.
Numerous players like Nick Kyrgios have already expressed their concerns about the game in such a crisis. Not only the US Open, but also the French 2020 Open will happen as soon as the US Open has finished their campaign. So it is clear that sport is slowly returning to the mainstream. Now the spotlight will be on the Australian Open of 2021.
