#‘Absolute scandal’: Tennis returns with dubious bubble and US Open confusion

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Maria Sakkari at the Palermo Open on Monday
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Tennis has officially returned with the WTA Palermo Ladies Open this week, but safety protocols have already been called into question.

An unnamed player has already been forced to withdraw after testing positive, and the “bubble” that WTA will attempt to uphold at each tournament has already been threatened.

Petra Martic is “not confident at all” that players will adhere to COVID-19 protocols.

“We all depend on each other and I don’t want to pay for someone else’s mistake, and I think that’s fair; whoever doesn’t follow the rules should be punished accordingly,” Martic said, according to The National.

Questions surrounding player safety will only increase at larger events, like the US Open, with both male and female competitors. The field in Palermo is comprised of nearly all Europeans, and they’ve been recommended to stay in their hotel rooms when not competing.

“It is an absolute scandal that players are in the same hotel as tourists in Palermo,” veteran men’s player Richard Gasquet told Le Equipe. “I don’t know how the WTA can accept it. If you stage a tournament, it’s because the hotel is 100 percent reserved for players and staff. If you can’t, you cancel it.”

It certainly seems as if “recommended” does not hold much power.

“I have a feeling that in New York it will be a real bubble. Here [in Palermo] they talk about us being in a bubble but it’s not at all,” Donna Vekic told the paper. “I don’t want to pretend that I’m locked in the room the whole day when I’m not. I went to dinner in the city. For sure we’re being careful and not being close to people but I’m not locked in the room and 90 percent of the players aren’t.

“I hope in New York there will actually be fines and if everyone respects that and it makes sense then I’m all for it, but if the rules are contradicting each other, then it makes no sense.”

The USTA has maintained that the the US Open — which is scheduled to start at the end of August — will take place. However, Maria Sakkari bemoaned an apparent lack of communication coming from the USTA. The Western & Southern Open was moved from Cincinnati to Flushing Meadows to be played before the US Open and will start on Aug. 20.

“The fact that US Open hasn’t made a decision yet is, sorry to say, pissing off every single player, because it’s 20 days away from Cincinnati starting,” Sakkari said.

The mercurial Nick Kyrgios has already withdrawn from the US Open.

“Let us take a breath here and remember what is important, which is health and safety as a community,” Kyrgios said in a statement. “We can rebuild our sport and the economy but we can never recover lives lost.”

Kyrgios joins fellow Australian and the No. 1 women’s player, Ash Barty, in pulling out of the New York event.

Kyrgios has chastised some of his competitors throughout the pandemic, particularly Novak Djokovic, who organized an exhibition tournament, the Adria Tour, in Croatia and Serbia. Both Djokovic and Grigor Dimitrov, who also played in the tournament, contracted the virus after the tournament. Alexander Zverev, who competed at the tournament, was filmed dancing and partying at a bar days after the pair tested positive.

“But tennis players, you have to act in the interests of each other and work together,” Kyrgios said. “You can’t be dancing on tables, money-grabbing your way around Europe or trying to make a quick buck hosting the next exhibition. That’s just so selfish. Think of the other people for once. That’s what this virus is about. It doesn’t care about your world ranking or how much money you have. Act responsibly.

“To those players that have been observing the rules and acting selflessly, I say good luck to you. Play at your own risk – and I have no problem with that.”