WTA TOUR RETURNS WITH PALERMO OPEN, MARKS NEW NORMAL

Nearly five months after the sport was suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic, Donna Vekic became the first player to win a main draw match in the COVID-19 era, beating Arantxa Rus 6-1 6-2 in the first round of the Palermo Ladies Open on Monday. The clay court event in Sicily marked the return of the WTA Tour which last held a tournament in March as the sport looks to limp back to a semblance of normality, albeit with strict guidelines in place to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus. Vekic’s victory was achieved in 75 minutes but just a smattering of applause rang around the small stadium from a handful of spectators that were allowed to attend the match with social distancing guidelines and temperature checks in place. The players did not greet each other at the net either, choosing to touch rackets instead, nor did they shake hands with the referee. They also had to manage their own towels while autographs and selfies are forbidden at the tournament which forged ahead even though a player withdrew over the weekend after testing positive for the virus.