Australian Open 2021 Qualifiers Reportedly Under Threat as Uncertainties Loom Over Schedule

With the end of the 2020 tennis season, the tennis world is a little over a month away from the Australian Open 2021. Although fans are pretty excited, there is some bad news from Australia. Some sources reveal that the qualifiers of the Australian Open 2021 could be canned.

With the cancellation of the three-round qualification, organizers believe that this could prevent a one-week delay. They are willing to start the tournament in January 2021 at any cost as otherwise, it would impact the other scheduled tournaments.

The management is planning to cut the number of players coming to Australia in order to start it on time. The US Open 2020 also followed a similar plan of action, which turned out to be successful. However, the ATP and the WTA are likely to criticize the move as qualifiers give an opportunity to the young talents. Apart from this, the youngsters could also make significant money from this.

February already has a tight schedule with ATP 500 tournaments in Rotterdam, Rio de Janeiro, Acapulco, and Dubai. WTA too has Dubai Tennis Championships starting on February 22 and Indian Wells and Miami Open in March. In a situation like this, the management of the Australia Open is trying hard to complete the Grand Slam on time so that players could refresh for the next tournaments.

Read More: Tennis Australia Chief announces a huge update on Australian Open 2021 amid uncertainties

Negotiations between the Australian Open management and government could produce a solution

Tennis Australia is in talks with the Victoria government and exploring another possibility. If the government allows the arrival of the players in late December, they could easily quarantine and get sufficient time. This could even allow the qualifiers to take place without any obstruction.

The time duration of the quarantine is another issue where deliberations are going on. While some want a complete 14-day quarantine, others favor a mix of a soft and hard quarantine.

The official statement on all the matters is yet to come from the management. In the meantime, fans hope to see some incredible tennis in 2021 starting from Australia in the upcoming January.