After it was confirmed late on Wednesday evening that an employee at the Grand Hyatt Hotel had tested positive to COVID-19, the future of the 2021 Australian Open seemed uncertain.
Over 500 players and officials will be tested for COVID-19 on Thursday, with all matches called off for the day.
Tennis Australia CEO Craig Tiley fronted the media on Thursday afternoon, providing an update on the lead in events and the Australian Open, set to commence on Monday.
"The intention is to start the Australian Open on Monday. There is no intention to change," Tiley said.
News that will come as a major delight to all players, officials and fans.
With the weather forecast predicting rain on Friday and six tournaments currently in play at Melbourne Park, Tiley still remains adamant the tournaments will reach completion.
"We have three covered stadiums and eight indoor courts. We can use them to conclude the lead up events.
The entire team’s been up all night dealing with this," Tiley explained.
Tomorrows order of play is expected to be released at approximately 6PM on Thursday.
“As far as the tennis goes, we are planning on continuing with the matches we had scheduled today. By 6 o’clock this evening we hope to have the schedule for tomorrow," Tiley said.
The Australian Open main draw was also set to take place on Thursday, but will now be pushed back to Friday, with the draws expected to be made public on Friday afternoon.