Novak Djokovic discusses potential postponement of Australian Open 2020

What's the story?

In a recent interview, Novak Djokovic discussed the possibility of the Australian Open being postponed due to the terrible bushfires in Australia.

Whilst admitting that such a response would be a last resort, he accepted that extreme circumstances may force the organizers into such a decision.

In case you didn't know...

Over the last few months, the west coast of Australia has been ravaged by terrible bushfires. The devastation has been immense, with over 20 people and millions of animals perishing due to the fires.

The heart of the matter

Djokovic, who serves as the head of the ATP Player Council, explained that the tournament organizers are likely to do everything in their power to ensure the tournament is not affected.

“I think they are going to try to do everything to [not] delay in terms of days and when it starts. But if it comes down to those conditions affecting the health of players, I think we should consider it.”

“It is tough for them because the schedule has to be respected, the Australian Open starts at a certain time so there are a lot of different things involved. But a health concern is a health concern for me and anybody."

Djokovic also added that a council meeting will be held ahead of the tournament to discuss the matter.

“We will see. I hope it is going to dissipate but if it stays like that, we have a council meeting in a week or 10 days and we will discuss that for sure if the conditions stay the same.”

What's next?

The wildfires ravaging Australia are, indeed, terrible and show few signs of abating. Whilst the Australian Open is unlikely to be directly affected, there could be a significant impact on the air quality.

The packed tennis calendar makes it extremely difficult to reschedule such an important event and we will get a clearer picture as the days go by.

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— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 6, 2020