Yahoo Finance 'Completely unfair': MP's stunning call to cancel Australian Open
Opposition MP Tim Smith caused an almighty stir after his controversial tweet about Stan Wawrinka and has continued his attack on Premier Daniel Andrews after calling for the Australian Open to be cancelled.
Several of the roughly 1200 players and staff flown to Melbourne on charter flights for the upcoming grand slam have been told they will be quarantined for 14 days after a number of positive coronavirus cases were detected among passengers on board.
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Premier Andrews has been under pressure for hosting the tournament with many Victorians stranded unable to enter their home state, while Australia welcomes tennis stars from around the word.
This led to opposition MP Tim Smith taking to Twitter to lash out at what he described as a ‘double standard’ in an attempt to score political points.
Seeking to make a point about the said double standard, Smith labelled fan favourite Wawrinka a ‘flog’ when he retweeted the Swiss player’s own post about being in quarantine after he was on the same flight as a confirmed positive case.
Many were perplexed by the member for Kew’s decision to target one of the few players not to have complained about the quarantine arrangements.
For every Victorian currently in Sydney that is banned from returning home by Daniel Andrews, this obscene double standard, where this flog of a tennis player is allowed in, and our own people aren’t, must make so many Victorian families incandescent... https://t.co/rNdGhi3mVb
— Tim Smith MP (@TimSmithMP) January 17, 2021
After fierce backlash online from his tweet, he then appeared on 2GB radio and called for the premier to ‘cancel’ the event.
“It’s completely unfair, it’s wrong and the double standards stink to high heavens,” Smith told Ben Fordham on Monday afternoon.
“Daniel Andrews should be standing up for Victorians, not global tennis players. Bring the Victorians home or cancel the Australian Open.”
Smith’s ‘flog’ tweet backfires
Smith’s tweet on popular tennis star Wawrinka sparked fierce backlash.
Despite including the hashtags ‘grateful’ and ‘happy to be here’, separating himself from some other players who have complained about the quarantine arrangements, Smith nevertheless targeted Wawrinka for his outrage - a decision which quickly backfired.
“For every Victorian currently in Sydney that is banned from returning home by Daniel Andrews, this obscene double standard, where this flog of a tennis player is allowed in, and our own people aren’t, must make so many Victorian families incandescent,” Smith posted.
Many were perplexed by the member for Kew’s decision to target one of the few players not to have complained about the quarantine arrangements.
Point scoring on the Australian Open is just about the easiest political win in the country right now, and you’ve somehow fumbled it. Very impressive
— henno (@jrhennessy) January 17, 2021
he says he's "happy to be here" and "grateful". Which bit specifically makes him a "flog"?
— Josh Butler (@JoshButler) January 17, 2021
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