#Tennis ref shocked at Sara Errani’s sweaty coronavirus mistake

Tennis stars have been in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons during the coronavirus crisis and that has — accidentally — continued in the WTA’s return to action.

Top players like Novak Djokovic and Alexander Zverev have come under fire — notably from Nick Kyrgios — for ignoring social distancing restrictions and partying at nightclubs, but breaches can occur on the court too.

As the WTA season restarted in Palermo, Italy’s Sara Errani celebrated her three-set victory over Sorana Cirstea by tossing her sweatband to a grateful fan in the crowd.

Obviously in the age of COVID-19, that’s a big no-no — though ironically the “lucky” recipient clamoring for some merchandise was wearing a mask. A split second later Errani realized what she’d done, turning sharply to the umpire and apologizing for her lapse in judgment.

The umpire’s reaction was even better, covering her face with her hand in despair.

Not to be outdone, Slovenian Kaja Juvan took things to the next level by throwing both her visor and sweatband into the crowd after defeating Marketa Vondrousova 1-6 7-5 6-4.

Djokovic, Grigor Dimitrov and Borna Coric all contracted coronavirus while participating in the Serbian’s Adria Tour earlier this year and there are still question marks around what the US Open will look like later this month as it tries to protect players from the spread of COVID-19.

Defending men’s champ Rafael Nadal and No. 1 women’s player Ash Barty have already revealed they won’t be competing in New York as the complexities of creating a secure environment become evident.

World No. 24 Donna Vekic will travel to the Big Apple for the grand slam but is expecting stricter regulations at Flushing Meadows than what she has been dealing with in Palermo.

“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,” Vekic said.

“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 per cent 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.”