Next week the main tournament will start at the Australian Open in Melbourne. But during this week of qualifying, the competition has been affected by the fire smoke in which Southeastern Australia is wrapped.
Former world champion and four-time Grand Slam winner Kim Clijsters, who laid off for the second time in 2012, would actually make a comeback during the Australian Open but be stopped because of a knee injury.
The 36-year-old, however, is critical of the organizer. She had wished the organizer would have explained how to handle the risks with the fire smoke when the main tournament starts. The Belgian believes that players' health must be given priority.
- If it is not possible to play in these conditions, what is the point? If you can't play good tennis and be fresh enough to play two hours in this million, or even four-five that the men can do, then you can't avoid or ignore the problem. They (the organizer) have postponed the qualifying matches, but it will not solve the air quality, she says according to the Reuters news agency.
"Had been loud"Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer were two of the stars who played at a show in Melbourne yesterday.
"I set out to raise money and convey the message that it is possible to go to Australia," Federer said afterwards.
Now the stars are met with criticism that they did not speak for the lower ranked players in the tournament.
- If I had been there, I would have been very loud and at least talked to the board and the tournament managers to try and get solutions, says Clijsters.
CLIP: She had to interrupt the match - because of the bad air
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