Nadal taking extra care with virus scare
Rafael Nadal is not taking any chances with Covid-19 and staying indoors when he is not on court, the Spaniard said on Thursday with three big names in the men’s singles draw having pulled out of Wimbledon after contracting the virus.
Spain’s Roberto Bautista Agut joined Croatian Marin Cilic, the former US Open champion and 2017 Wimbledon runner-up, and Italian eighth seed Matteo Berrettini, who lost to Novak Djokovic in the 2021 final, in withdrawing from the Grand Slam.
Nadal, who tested positive for coronavirus at the end of last year, said he was taking extra precautions.
“No, no, no paranoia at all. Reality,” he told reporters after reaching the third round with a 6-4, 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 victory over Ricardas Berankis of Lithuania on Thursday.
“That’s the thing. A good friend of mine today had to pull out, Roberto Bautista, with another case. When this kind of stuff happens, it’s because probably a lot of cases are around.”
The pandemic forced organisers to cancel the 2020 Wimbledon tournament but no Covid-19 restrictions are in place this year and vaccination is not mandatory for players to participate.
The All England Club has also welcomed back full capacity crowds.
“I am not doing many things. Just staying here and staying in the house, not going out at all anymore,” said Nadal, who is bidding for a calendar Grand Slam after winning the Australian Open and French Open titles this year.
“That’s part of this challenging world that we are facing the last couple of years. I am not saying that we are not doing the things the proper way because at some point we need to open everything again, we need to be free, have a normal life.
“It looks like now the Covid is less dangerous in terms of creating very dangerous health problems. At the same time, when you open, these kind of things can happen.”
GRASS RIDDLE
Women’s world No.1 Iga Swiatek may be a two-time Grand Slam champion and on a 37-match winning streak but the 21-year-old, who reached the third round at Wimbledon on Thursday, said she was still trying to find her feet on grass.
The Pole won the Wimbledon junior title in 2018 and is the clear favourite to add the grasscourt Grand Slam to her two French Open titles this year.
But the French Open champion still finds grass the trickiest of the surfaces to handle despite reaching the fourth round in 2021.
“It’s hard to describe because, well, on grass I feel like everything changes,” she told reporters after her laboured 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 second-round win against Dutch lucky loser Lesley Pattinama Kerkhove.
“You have to adjust the movement. I mean, for sure, I really like how I move on court, especially when I can slide, when I can recover quickly. Here I can’t really slide. I have to slow down before hitting the ball, so it’s tricky.”
The Pole faces 37th-ranked Frenchwoman Alize Cornet in the third round.
BOULTER SHOCKS PLISKOVA
British wildcard Katie Boulter said her shock second-round win over last year’s runner-up Karolina Pliskova meant more to her as it came at her late grandmother’s favourite tournament.
Boulter, ranked 118th in the world, eliminated the Czech sixth seed 3-6, 7-6 (7/4), 6-4 and dedicated the victory to her grandmother who passed away earlier this week.
“Her favourite tournament was Wimbledon,” Boulter told reporters. “That’s why it’s a special one for me. She’d watch every single match that was on the TV.
“It’s been a tough few days for sure. I’ve tried to kind of get my emotions out and deal with the situation, try and keep my head on the tennis.
“I was lucky because my grandpa managed to come down from Leicester, and so we could keep him company and keep supporting him at the same time.”
Boulter, who has reached the third round of a Grand Slam for the first time, will next face Frenchwoman Harmony Tan who stunned Serena Williams in the first round.