AFP, Melbourne :
All players at the Australian Open must be vaccinated for January’s Grand Slam, tournament chief Craig Tiley confirmed Saturday, piling more pressure on world number one and defending men’s champion Novak Djokovic, who has refused to reveal if he has been inoculated.
Melbourne, where the tournament is held, has spent more than 260 days under lockdown during the pandemic and the Victoria state government made clear last month there would be no concessions for unvaccinated players.
Tiley said the playing group had been informed they must get the jab to compete at Melbourne Park.
“There’s a lot of speculation about vaccination and just to be really clear, when the (Victoria) premier announced that everyone on site… will need to be vaccinated, we made that clear to the playing group,” he told Channel Nine television.
“All the playing group understands it, our patrons will need to be vaccinated, all the staff working at the Australian Open will need to be vaccinated.”
This includes nine-time champion Djokovic.
Tiley said the Serbian superstar, who would be gunning for a record 21st Grand Slam singles title if he competes in Melbourne, “has said that he views this as a private matter for him”.
“We would love to see Novak here. He knows that he’ll have to be vaccinated to play here,” he added.
