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By Giri Nathan
[vc_empty_space height="15px"]They’re out of quarantine. They’re emerging from their caves! (Well, most of them.) And they’re on the courts. Tennis is back, as exhibitions in Adelaide today showcased all the sport’s luminaries: Naomi Osaka, the Williams sisters, Novak Djokovic, Dominic Thiem, Ashleigh Barty, Simona Halep, Rafael Nadal...possible future luminary Jannik Sinner...and also world No. 79 Irina-Camelia Begu. Serena beat Naomi, Novak had a blister, Rafa beat Domi, and Australia, which has not seen a local COVID-19 infection in 12 days, got to pack a stadium full of maskless fans. Ahead of the main event in Melbourne, tennis’ stars have done their best to get the masses thinking about their sport when there are a handful of other things vying for our attention, like a pandemic, its new variants, and its vaccines. But I think they pulled it off. I can confirm that I am now thinking about tennis. Consider some highlights from their press blitz.