World No1 Barty pulls out of US Open over Covid-19
WORLD No1 Ashleigh Bart y pulled out of the US Open on Thursday over fears about the coronav i r us pa ndemic i n a major blow for t he Gra nd Slam, which is scheduled to start in New York on August 31.
The Australian is the biggest name so far to withdraw from the tournament, with her decision coming as the US marked a grim milestone when its Cov i d - 1 9 d e a t h s t o p p e d 150,000.
“My team and I have decided that we won’t be travelling to the US for the Western and Sout hern Open a nd t he US Open t his year,” she said in a s t a t e ment t o A u s t r a l i a n media.
“I love both events so it was a dif f icult decision but t here a r e s t i l l s i g n i f ic a nt r i s k s involved due to Covid-19 and I don’t f e e l c om f or t a ble putting my team and I in that position.
“I wish the USTA all the best for the tournaments and look forward to being back in the US next year,” she added.
Her decision came despite the New York area keeping coronavirus cases at a relatively low level since spiking in March and April while areas such as Florida, Texas and Ca l i f o r n i a h a v e b e c o me hotspots.
It was not unexpected, with t he 24-yea r-old la st mont h ex pressi ng concer ns about t he US Open goi ng a head, and she won plenty of support on Thursday on social media for her “sensible” decision to give it a miss.
Barty, who surged to the top of the rankings last year and has stayed there since, said she would continue to monitor the situation before deciding whether to travel to Europe to prepare for a defence of her French Open crown.
“I will make my decision on the French Open and the surrounding WTA European tournaments in the coming weeks,” she said, with Roland Garros due to start on September 27.
Barty was one of several leading women players not on the entry list on Wednesday for the ATP and WTA Western and Southern Open, a tune-up event for the US Open from August 20-28 in a quarantine environment without spectators at Flushing Meadows.
Ot hers missi ng i ncluded world No2 Simona Halep of Romania, t he current Wimbledon cha mpion, plus No5 E l i na Sv itol i na of Uk ra i ne a nd l a s t y e a r ’s US Open cha mpion, Ca nada’s si x t hranked Bianca Andreescu.
Whether they play the US Open remains to be seen.
In contrast, top-ranked Novak Djokovic, the reigning Wimbledon and Australian Open champion, and world No2 Rafael Nadal, the current US Open champion, were among the men’s entries, signalling their likely intent to play the Grand Slam.
Also on t he list was Bart y’s fel low Aust ra l ia n Nick Ky rgios, who last month blasted t he ATP as “self ish” for pressing ahead with plans for the US Open.
The opinionated Kyrgios has since waged a running battle on social media with some of the top names in the game who played at Djokovic’s illfated Adria Tour tennis exhibition, blasting their “stupidity” and risky behaviour.