Tennis Stars Struggle with Quarantine ahead of Australian Open

The 2020 Australian Open was one of the year's few international sporting events not changed by the coronavirus pandemic.

The tournament took place in January 2020, before international travel was shut down. The winners were Novak Djokovic and Sofia Kenin.

But this year's tournament is already very different. First, it has been delayed by about a month because of travel restrictions¹ related² to the pandemic. It is now set to begin on February 8.

Players arrived in Australia recently and some of them were on an airplane with passengers who tested positive for the coronavirus. Because of this, 72 players are now required to complete a 14-day quarantine and are not even permitted to leave their hotel rooms.

One of those players is 2016 champion Angelique Kerber. She recently had to celebrate her birthday in quarantine. In the past, she spent birthdays in Australia celebrating with tournament organizers after her matches. This year, she had to accept a message posted on social media by Australian Open organizers to mark the day.

The 72 players restricted³ to their hotels cannot leave to practice. That means they must try to find ways to stay fit inside their rooms. Some of them are hitting tennis balls against the walls and windows.

Other players are facing a different set of restrictions. They are inside a so-called⁴ bubble⁵ and are permitted to practice outside their rooms for up to five hours a day. But they cannot mix with people who are not part of the tournament.

In Adelaide, South Australia, players including Serena Williams, Naomi Osaka, Djokovic and Rafael Nadal are able to play outside.

Some of the players stuck inside their rooms have expressed frustration⁶ about their situation. They say they were not fully⁷ aware of the quarantine rules when they boarded their flights to Australia.

Australia has done a much better job of limiting the spread of the coronavirus than many other countries. Aside from an outbreak three months ago, the country has kept the number of sick people very low. Just over 900 people have died.

Daniel Andrews is head of Australia's Victoria state, where the tournament takes place in the city of Melbourne. He told The Associated Press the country's strong policies will not change just to make famous tennis players feel better.

"There's been a bit of chatter⁸ from a number of players about the rules. Well, the rules apply to them as they apply to everybody else, and they were all briefed on that before they came and that was a condition on which they came."

Australia did, however, decide to open its borders to the tennis players in the first place. About 1,200 people made the trip, including coaches, tournament workers and media representatives.

Three people on a flight from Los Angeles, California to Australia tested positive for the coronavirus. Those people are staying in a special hotel.

None of the players have tested positive for the coronavirus since they arrived.

Local officials have promised "zero tolerance⁹" for anyone violating¹⁰ the quarantine rules. That means players are exercising in their hotel rooms until the two-week quarantine ends.

Craig Tiley is the tournament director. He said he hopes those players will be able to do their best in a "tough situation."

"We've got to do whatever we can to make it as fair as possible."

Words in This Story

positive- adj. in a medical test, positive means the person being tested has a disease¹¹ or condition

quarantine- n. the period of time during which a person or animal that has a disease or that might have a disease is kept away from others to prevent the disease from spreading

bubble- n. an isolated¹² group of people

frustration- n. the feeling of being annoyed or upset because things are not happening the way you want them to

chatter- n. casual¹³ talk that is usually not important or interesting

coach- n. a person who teaches and trains an athlete or performer

zero tolerance- n. a policy of giving the most severe punishment possible to every person who commits a crime or breaks a rule

tough- adj. very difficult to do or deal with

1 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

2 related   

adj.有关系的，有关联的，叙述的，讲述的

参考例句：

• I am not related to him in any way.我和他无任何关系。
• We spent days going through all related reference material.我们花了好多天功夫查阅所有有关的参考资料。

3 restricted   

adj.有限的；受约束的

参考例句：

• Speed is restricted to 30 mph in towns. 在城里车速不得超过每小时30英里。
• a restricted range of foods 有限的食物种类

4 so-called   

adj.所谓的，号称的

参考例句：

• These were the so-called mainframe machines.它们被称为主机。
• Let's see what this so-called button does.让我们来看看为什么这个按钮叫这个名字。

5 bubble   

n.泡，水泡，气泡；泡影，妄想；v.(使)起泡

参考例句：

• The water begins to bubble.水开始起泡了。
• Their hopes of success have burst like a bubble.他们成功的希望已经成了泡影。

6 frustration   

n.挫折，失败，失效，落空

参考例句：

• He had to fight back tears of frustration.他不得不强忍住失意的泪水。
• He beat his hands on the steering wheel in frustration.他沮丧地用手打了几下方向盘。

7 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

8 chatter   

vi.／n.喋喋不休；短促尖叫；(牙齿)打战

参考例句：

• Her continuous chatter vexes me.她的喋喋不休使我烦透了。
• I've had enough of their continual chatter.我已厌烦了他们喋喋不休的闲谈。

9 tolerance   

n.宽容；容忍，忍受；耐药力；公差

参考例句：

• Tolerance is one of his strengths.宽容是他的一个优点。
• Human beings have limited tolerance of noise.人类对噪音的忍耐力有限。

10 violating   

亵渎( violate的现在分词 )； 违反； 侵犯； 强奸

参考例句：

• Ignorance of a law does not excuse a man for violating it. 一个人不懂法律不构成犯法的理由。
• It was sued by the U.S. federal government for violating antitrust law. 它被美国联邦政府指控违反了反托拉斯法。

11 disease   

n.疾病，弊端

参考例句：

• The doctors are trying to stamp out the disease.医生正在尽力消灭这种疾病。
• He fought against the disease for a long time.他同疾病做了长时间的斗争。

12 isolated   

adj.与世隔绝的

参考例句：

• His bad behaviour was just an isolated incident. 他的不良行为只是个别事件。
• Patients with the disease should be isolated. 这种病的患者应予以隔离。

13 casual   

adj.漠不关心，冷漠的；随便的，非正式的；偶然的，碰巧的

参考例句：

• He earns a living by casual labour.他靠做临时工为生。
• The guests wore casual clothes.客人们穿着便服。