Professional tennis has always been influenced by the seismic events of the world in which it operates.
Four days after a local COVID-19 situation, despite widespread uncertainty, the world’s best players remain gathered together on an island in the Asia-Pacific. The last time they staged a Grand Slam – back in the fall of 2020 – something miraculous happened. An unseeded Polish teenager ran the table at Roland Garros with an almost frightening fortnight of focus.
For everyone involved in this Australian Open, that’s precisely what it’s going to take.
It promises to be another volatile and wildly unpredictable event. With so many top players in extended action the week going in, with some quarantine questions still unanswered, nothing is unimaginable. Still, the goal remains the same: A victory here in 2021’s first major would be the best possible start to the Porsche Race to Shenzhen.