Australian Open 2021: Crowds return to Melbourne Park after lockdown 5 ends-The Australian Open fans on Thursday returned to the stands in the year’s first Grand Slam after completing five-day lockdown to contain COVID-19 spread. As per officials, no new cases of COVID-19 have been reported in Victoria on Thursday as residents in Melbourne were set free from mandatory social distancing norms.
It is necessary for the crowds to wear face masks.
For the last five-days, players competed in round 4 and quarterfinal stage. The crowds capacity has been reduced from 30,000 to 7,477 for the two sessions’ of play for the next three days.
US legend Serena Williams is in action in the semifinal on Thursday at Rod Laver Arena against 2019 Australian Open winner Naomi Osaka. The 39-year-old is aiming for a record equal Grand Slams (24th Grand Slam—equal to Margaret Court.
Around 19,000 fans had earlier participated ahead of lockdown period in the Australian Open matches.
The organizers are desperate for crowds to return to the Melbourne Park after spending a huge sum in the tournament, including 40 million Australian dollars in putting players through quarantine.
Most of the restrictions in Victoria have been lifted after Wednesday midnight but masks are mandatory both indoors and outdoors.
Meanwhile, Australia has largely controlled the spread of the virus within its borders, some small outbreaks have been occurred in the country’s biggest cities from quarantine hotels, leading to short lockdowns.