Much was made of the conditions some players were subjected to before the tournament but has it really had any effect?
The lead-in to the Australian Open was dominated by quarantine. The domestic debate concerned the appropriateness of importing hundreds of players and officials, each at risk of bringing with them Covid-19 into a country that had gone to great pains to all-but eliminate the virus from its shores. But within the tennis community the focus was on the competitive imbalance brought about by the tiers of quarantine.
A handful of stars were treated to a fortnight of quarantine lite in South Australia, where they were able to work on their games and reacclimatise to the presence of crowds courtside. “It’s a privilege to be here in Adelaide. But it’s not that huge an advantage,” last year’s beaten finalist Dominic Thiem said.
