Melbourne to lift lockdown, but questions remain over return of tennis fans

MELBOURNE: Stay-at-home orders will be lifted for 6 million residents of Victoria, Australia’s second-most populous state, on Wednesday (Feb 17), though it is unclear whether the Australian Open tennis tournament will welcome back fans in Melbourne.

A snap five-day lockdown had been ordered for Victoria state on Friday after a small outbreak of the more infectious UK coronavirus variant prompted fears that Australia's successful battle to contain the pandemic could be undone.

The virus cluster linked to a hotel quarantining travellers returned from overseas has grown to 19 people, but with no new cases reported on Wednesday, authorities said the lockdown would be lifted at 11.59 pm as planned.

READ: Australia, New Zealand receive COVID-19 vaccines, inoculations to start

However, it is unclear if the year's first tennis Grand Slam - which started three weeks late to allow international players to quarantine - would be allowed to welcome socially distanced fans as the final rounds get under way in Melbourne.

Under the original crowd restrictions put in place before the tournament, 25,000 fans will be allowed into the Melbourne Park precinct over each of the last four days of the championships.

Tournament organisers will be desperate to get fans through the gates after spending a huge amount of money to get the tournament up and running, including about A$40 million (US$31.01 million) on putting players through 14 days of quarantine.

Tickets went on sale for Thursday's matches, but there was no formal announcement from organisers.

Premier Daniel Andrews said numbers at large public events would be capped, but further examination of organiser plans to keep attendees safe was required.

"They will be on a case-by-case basis and it is not a simple process we go through quite an exhaustive process to make sure that those events are viable and can happen but are safe," he said.

Andrews said further announcements on events would be made later on Wednesday.

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