Covid border closures leave Australia’s tennis stars struggling to reach Melbourne

Australia’s tennis stars are spread far and wide, all trying to reach Melbourne for the Australian Open, with one unlucky player in serious doubt.

Queensland’s Australian Open-bound players who were briefly stuck because of border closures are set to fly to Melbourne on Sunday night via Canberra.

John Millman – who will represent Australia at next month’s ATP Cup – James Duckworth, Maddison Inglis and Kim Birrell arrived in Canberra in recent days.

The Victorian Government’s decision to relax border restrictions on people travelling from Queensland has paved the way for them to head to Melbourne.

Tennis player John Millman and his girlfriend Fi in the Sofitel Wentworth Hotel in quarantine. Picture: Jane Dempster/The Australian

Last week’s sudden Greater Brisbane lockdown due to a case of the mutant UK strain of COVID-19 entering the city caught some players out and created a period of uncertainty.

World No. 1 Ash Barty was one player who managed to escape Queensland in time to beat the closure.

Canberra has become a tennis haven for a series of Australian players, with Sydneysiders Jordan Thompson and Matt Reid also there training with Nick Kyrgios.

Thompson and Reid must spend at least 14 days there, but may not leave immediately afterwards for Melbourne, where they’d have access to only about six courts between Xavier College and Kooyong.

However, it’s believed Australian Open wildcards Aleks Vukic and Chris O’Connell – who are also from Sydney – didn’t receive government approval to enter the Melbourne bubble with the international arrivals.

Jordan Thompson is training in Canberra with Nick Kyrgios. Picture: Al Bello/Getty Images

Tennis Australia is understood to be in the process of helping them relocate into an ‘orange zone’, where they’d be able to apply for a permit to travel to Victoria.

Meanwhile, there’s also been some drama for another Australian player, Ellen Perez.

Perez remains in Dubai after not being allowed on one of the charter flights with others from Australian Open qualifying, because she reported having a runny nose briefly before departure time.

The world No. 47 doubles player has subsequently tested negative for the coronavirus and is now relying on TA being able to get her on another flight to Australia.

However, it’s believed Perez will be forced into hard quarantine on her return, meaning she won’t be able to train for 14 days leading into the Open and will miss a warm-up event.

Ellen Perez is stuck in Dubai. Picture: Mark Stewart

BRISBANE-BASED BRIT TENNIS PLAYER AND AUSSIE CITIZEN STRANDED IN UAE

AN AUSTRALIAN citizen who lives in Brisbane but competed in Australian Open qualifying for Great Britain has joined the long list of those stranded overseas and unsure when they will return.

Tennis Australia committed to flying competitors who qualified for the grand slam from Dubai and Doha to Melbourne on charter flights, plus alternates and Australian players.

Naiktha Bains was not considered an Australian for this purpose, because of the country she now chooses to represent, since making a formal request to change in April 2019.

Naiktha Bains missed out on the flight to Australia after she chose to represent Great Britain in the Fed Cup. Picture: Robert Cianflone/Getty Images

The 23-year-old, who was born in Leeds, lost in first-round qualifying, so her and her coach father, Gurnake, being on the charter flight was dependent on TA recognising them as Australians.

“It’s disappointing, because although she’s chosen to represent Great Britain for Fed Cup, she is still an Australian citizen and permanent resident in Australia,” Gurnake Bains told the Herald Sun.

“This is her home and the AO fact sheet (for the qualifying tournament) clearly stated that TA would help players that didn’t qualify get home.

“Not only did they not allow her back with the other Australians who didn’t qualify – despite three emails from TA’s man on the ground, Fraser Wright – we have not had one option given to us on how we can get home.

“I even offered to pay TA for seats on the charter flight, but was told by Fraser that (Australian Open tournament director Craig) Tiley would not even consider it.”

Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley with Rafael Nadal at last year’s Australian Open. Picture: Michael Dodge/AAP Image

Tiley said in a statement to the Herald Sun that TA “made it clear all along” that only non-qualifying players who represented Australia would be flown to Melbourne, on top of qualifiers, alternates and main draw entrants.

The event fact sheet reads that ‘Australian non-qualifiers’ were eligible for the charter flight.

It’s the continuation of TA’s stance on Bains, who was also denied entry last year into the UTR Pro Tennis Series events in Australia at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

That’s despite her UTR (Universal Tennis Rating) being superior to most players in the draws she tried to play in.

These singles-only tournaments are played worldwide for male and female players with a UTR rank between 200 and 2000.

Not being able to play in those events meant world No. 242 Bains’ Australian Open qualifying match was her first competitive hitout in almost a year.

Gurnake Bains has sought legal advice and been told they have “grounds in terms of employment restrictions and human rights”.

The Bains family has never spoken publicly until now about the decision to switch allegiances to Great Britain, after she represented Australia at Junior Fed Cup level.

They were working outside of the TA system before the switch and felt Naiktha wasn’t afforded the same opportunities as her Australian peers because of that, Gurnake said.

“Naiktha is always going to be an Australian citizen and live in Australia,” Gurnake said.

“We don’t want anything from TA, in terms of support or finance – no wildcards, no nothing. Just some common sense.”

Bains has opted to travel about 120km from where qualifying was held to compete in a $25,000 event in Fujairah that many of the non-qualifying female players are also contesting.

After that, they may need to fly to COVID hot spots for match play or stay in the United Arab Emirates and train for an indefinite period.