Australian Open plunged into chaos as 23 players fly to Melbourne with Covid case on board

The Australian Open was plunged into further chaos after 23 players landed in Melbourne on a charter flight with a Covid-infected passenger on board, bringing the number of stranded competitors to 47.

The infected passenger, who is not a competitor in the tennis event, arrived at 8:20 a.m. on January 15 by flight from Abu Dhabi.

There were 64 people on the plane, including 23 players.

“All of the passengers on the flight are already in quarantine hotels,” the Australian Open said in a statement.

The Covid-19 patient, who tested negative for the coronavirus before the flight, was taken to a health hotel.

“The 23 players on the flight will not be able to leave their hotel rooms for 14 days and until they are medically cleared,” a statement continued.

“They won’t be able to practice.”

Saturday night’s update comes just hours after it was revealed that two-time Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka was among 24 players confined to their hotel rooms after two positive coronavirus tests were reported. emerged from their charter flight.

The Victorian Government’s Covid-19 Quarantine Victoria (CQV) confirmed that a crew member and an Australian Open participant who was not a player, tested positive after arriving on the flight from Los Angeles Friday morning.

The two were transferred to a “health hotel”.

“The 66 remaining passengers on the flight were determined to be close contacts,” the CQV statement said.

“ Players and support people will not be able to leave quarantine to attend training.

“Players are helped to access equipment in their hotel rooms to help them maintain their fitness during this time.

Players were initially given an exemption to leave their quarantine hotel to train for up to five hours a day, but an email from Tennis Australia confirmed that everyone on the flight would now be stranded.

The email read: ‘Unfortunately health officials informed us that two people on your flight out of LAX who arrived at 5:15 a.m. on Friday January 15 returned positive COVID-19 PCR tests upon arrival at Melbourne.

‘The health official has reviewed the flight and has determined that everyone on board must self-isolate and will be confined to their rooms during the 14-day quarantine period.

“We know that’s not how you imagined your preparations for OA would begin, but our entire team is here to support you and do whatever we can to help you get through it.

Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley later released a statement saying the 24 players who were on that flight will not be able to leave their hotel rooms for 14 days and until they have received medical clearance.

‘We are communicating with everyone on this flight, and in particular with the playgroup whose conditions have now changed, to ensure that their needs are met as much as possible, and that they are fully assessed of the situation’ ‘Tiley said.

Besides Azarenka who won the title in 2012 and 2013, American Sloane Stephens and Japanese star Kei Nishikori were also on the flight.

Nishikori had coronavirus in August.

All passengers had to return negative tests within 72 hours of departure.