A year ago, the Australian Open had already started by now. Historically, the first Grand Slam tennis tournament begins in mid-January. Obviously, tennis was also heavily influenced by Covid and after the suspension of the season in 2020 from March to mid-August it started again, despite many difficulties.
But we managed to play regularly, although without an audience, Roland Garros, the US Open and the Masters, as well as the Internazionali d’Italia. The 2021 calendar was upset, at least in the first three months, again by the Coronavirus, and by the very strict rules imposed by the Australian government that imposed two weeks of strict quarantine for all athletes arriving in Australia, but despite something went wrong and right now there are 72 tennis players in solitary confinement.
And the controversies are obviously huge. Tournament director Craig Tiley, who is being dragged by the jacket from many sides, is trying to cheer everyone up and defends the choice to play the Grand Slam, which had also been questioned.
Tiley spoke of the protocol: “They know that it is a price to pay for having the privilege of competing for a prize pool of 80 million Australian dollars” Instead, Vika Azarenka threw gasoline on the fire, which is in quarantine, despite being negative : “Fourteen days of quarantine is difficult to accept, I understand the frustration.
We have a global pandemic: sometimes things happen and we have to accept them, adapt and move on. I would like to make a call for cooperation for the local community that is going through a period of restrictions that it has not chosen, but which it has been forced to follow.
I would like to ask to be sensitive to those who have lost their jobs or loved ones in this period. Things get easier when we work together. “Meanwhile, former world No. 1 Simona Halep recently voiced her thoughts on Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, praising them both for some of their unique abilities.
Halep pays tribute to Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal
“I can say that I like Roger Federer for the beauty of his game and the way he plays this sport,” said Simona Halep. “You have the feeling that he doesn’t sweat and that his shirt is the same as when the game started.
Nadal is a totally different tennis player. It expresses hard work and a crazy desire to keep improving. They are different people both on and off the court. I don’t like staying with either one because I like both ”.
Simona Halep also spoke about Rafael Nadal’s hegemony at Roland Garros. The 29-year-old believes Nadal is likely to continue his dominance in Paris, seeing that even the worst possible conditions this year failed to dissuade him.
According to Halep, the Spaniard will add a few more French Open titles to his collection before ending the day. “I firmly believe that he will continue to win at Roland Garros,” Halep said.
“This year the conditions in Paris were very harsh, cold and wet. Still, he didn’t lose any sets. I see him winning the title” two or three more times. ”
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