The Australian Open tennis players began to leave the hotel segregation and quarantine requirements after completing their 14-day separation, about a week before the start of the event.
On Sunday, about 500 players will be released from hotels in Melbourne and Adelaide, organizers said.
COVID Norms
Respected stars Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Serena Williams are among those allowed to leave on Friday.
The players are quarantine in hotels due to Australian government’s Covid-19 rules for anyone entering the country.
In early January, more than 1,700 players, workers and others who will be participating in the Grand Slam were flown to Australia on chartered flights. The tournament starts on the 8th of February.
Unlike other returning travelers who stay full-time in hotel rooms, athletes are allowed to leave their rooms for five hours a day for court practice and exercise.
A small group of 72 players were completely locked and segregated in their rooms in Melbourne, however, after coronavirus cases were found on their planes.
Eight cases have been linked to the event so far, including Spanish tennis player Paula Badosa.
Criticism From Players
The segregation policy has led to criticism from many players who were concerned about how it would affect their preparation.
US tennis player Tennys Sandgren and Georgian player Oksana Kalashnikova continued this criticism on Thursday, after saying they had learned their confinement would be extended by another day.
“It’s also another day we can’t practice,” Sandgren wrote on social media.
He said he would only have three days to practice outside the room before playing a competitive game.
Melbourne endured some of the world’s longest shutouts last year and many locals are worried about Covid’s potential risk from the tournament.
Some players have embraced what the Melburnians experienced last year, and thanked the Australian authorities for hosting the event.
“Conditions were great for us, considering the circumstances,” said Djokovic in Adelaide on Friday.
Earlier this month, the men’s world number one lobbied Tennis Australia for better conditions for players in hard lockdown.
On Friday, he said he had gone for a walk in a park: “Just putting feet on the ground… just having the space, I think, that’s what we all kind of missed.”
He initially missed the first half of an exhibition match in Adelaide, after he pulled out citing blisters on his hands. However, he later returned to play the second set. The match had been part of a deal to allow him to quarantine in Adelaide.
In a press conference earlier, Williams said she was “very happy” her quarantine time was over.
“To be in a room with a three-year-old and being her best friend is definitely difficult especially after training and working out… it’s like, oh my gosh, it never ends,” she joked to reporters.
“We had a calendar in our room and every day we marked an X on the day that went by and a big circle on the quarantine ending day.”
