Is the rush for athletes to play really worth it?
Who knew a tennis ball could be so dangerous?
Certainly not Novak Djokovic, whose incredibly misguided decision to flout the coronavirus pandemic with a series of tennis exhibitions ended with the world’s best tennis player, his wife and who knows how many others infected. He’s now sorry, of course, but tell that to anyone who ends up on a ventilator because he couldn’t wait to get back on the court.
His fellow players didn’t exactly line up in support of Djokovic, who previously spouted antivaccination views and did not encourage social distancing or masks at the exhibitions.
“Speedy recovery fellas, but that’s what happens when you disregard all protocols. This IS NOT A JOKE,” Australian player Nick Kyrgios tweeted.
Danger lurks everywhere in today’s new world and not just in Djokovic’s orbit, where three other players in his exhibitions in Serbia and Croatia also tested positive. The pandemic that shut down sports three months ago continues to wreak havoc even as leagues, teams and players struggle to find a new way forward.
Colleges already are reporting positive COVID-19 tests among athletes returning to campus in the U.S., and there are reports of a number of positives in the NFL that include star Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott.
A woman’s soccer team pulled out of a proposed NWSL restart when several players were infected and at least one WNBA player already has said she won’t play a proposed season because of health concerns.
NBA stars are worried, and so are NHL players as their leagues race to finish makeshift seasons. The NFL, meanwhile, continues to forge ahead with its plans to play even as teams report positive tests on an almost daily