15 still held in AO quarantine

There are still 15 people being held in quarantine ahead of the Australian Open, including one player and two others who tested positive for COVID-19 Melbourne health authorities confirmed on Sunday.

More than 1,000 players and their entourages were released by midnight on Saturday and have started preparing for the first Grand Slam of 2021.

Spain’s Paula Badosa was the only player to have confirmed that she tested positive, restarting the clock on her mandatory period of isolation.

The state of Victoria reported no local transmission of the virus for the 29th straight day on Sunday, as Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley said the priority for his organisation remained the health of the local community.

“No one is coming out of quarantine unless it is absolutely proved that they are not incubating the virus,” he said on ABC TV.

“They’ve had a test every day, there’s no quarantine process in the world that has been as rigid as this one.

“The players are in the community, and they are like us, and we have to keep practising the health protocols to keep us safe.”