"I don't think we needed that" - Sania Mirza on Novak Djokovic's Adria Tour fiasco
Novak Djokovic had organised the Adria Tour, a series of exhibition matches in Balkan nations, to aid in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. Featuring top-ranked players like himself, Dominic Thiem, Alexander Zverev, Grigor Dimitrov and the like, the event was expected to be a stepping stone to the resumption of tennis.
However, lax COVID-19 protocols meant that four participating players - Grigor Dimitrov, Borna Coric, Viktor Troicki and Novak Djokovic - tested positive for the dreaded virus. That in turn forced the cancellation of the whole event, leaving the organizers red-faced.
Novak Djokovic has been at the receiving end of relentless criticism ever since, from players, tennis experts and fans alike. His decision to host a tournament without adequate safety regulations in place, at a time when the virus is wreaking havoc across the globe, has attracted the ire of the entire tennis community.
During an interaction with Hindustan Times, Indian doubles star Sania Mirza also gave her take on the issue. She pondered the sport's return in the aftermath of Novak Djokovic's Adria Tour, and said that it was difficult for her to look too far into the future.
"From what I’ve heard, they are trying to (go ahead)," Sania said. "Honestly, I don’t know if it’s going to happen. It’s difficult for me sitting here to predict something that’s going to happen across the world in two months and assess the situation there."
Sania Mirza also said that the spate of COVID-19 positive cases among players participating in the Adria Tour, one of whom was Novak Djokovic, is something that should never have happened. The Indian fears there could be a repeat of the fiasco if necessary pandemic-related guidelines and regulations are not strictly adhered to.
"I don’t know if I’m going to say that it is a timely lesson that the tennis community needed to learn by some of our top players in the world testing positive. I don’t think we needed that."
What happened at Novak Djokovic's Adria Tour was no joke: Sania Mirza
Sania Mirza believes that the events at the Adria Tour were 'no joke', and that other players would now have second thoughts about returning to the tour.
"Realistically, after what happened at the Adria Tour, I do believe that people are going to think about it (returning to the tour) a few times. This is a health risk, it is no joke. We’ll just have wait and watch, because it’s like we’re living day-to-day now."
Following the clearances given by the Serbian and Croatian governments, who grossly underestimated the COVID-19 situation, the Adria Tour had gone ahead with no strict COVID-19 restrictions.
The exhibition tournament featured linesmen and ball kids, and matches were played to full houses. The players hugged and shook hands with each other and even attended an infamous shirtless party.
Fortuitously, the first leg of the Adria Tour in Belgrade concluded without any mishap. But the situation unraveled during the second leg in Zadar, Croatia; just before the final between Andrey Rublev and Novak Djokovic, Grigor Dimitrov announced that he had tested positive.
Shortly thereafter, three more players - one of whom was Novak Djokovic - also tested positive for the dreaded virus. That resulted in the cancellation of the entire exhibition tournament.