"It shouldn't have happened" - Dominic Thiem apologizes again for Adria Tour debacle
Dominic Thiem, who won the first leg of the Novak Djokovic-organized Adria Tour, believes that the players acted too naively in the Balkans. Thiem also apologized unconditionally for his behavior during the event, as a follow-up to his Instagram post last week.
Speaking in an interview with Sports Bild, Dominic Thiem talked at length about the ill-fated Adria Tour. The 2020 Australian Open runner-up he also shared some details of his upcoming exhibition tournament 'Thiem's 7', and gave his opinion on the resumption of the ATP tour.
We thought that the government's measures were correct: Dominic Thiem
Dominic Thiem has been the most active player on the tennis circuit since the easing of the coronavirus-enforced lockdown. He won the Belgrade leg of the Adria tour, seized the trophy at the Generali Pro Austrian Series, and even competed in the Ultimate Tennis Showdown.
The fans have repeatedly warned Dominic Thiem about the possibility of risking his health - as well as that of others - by traveling to multiple nations in the middle of a pandemic. But the Austrian has kept asserting that he has been taking regular tests, and he even shared an Instagram post saying that he had taken five tests in the space of 10 days.
Still, questions continue to dog the Austrian given that four participants at the Adria Tour - namely, Novak Djokovic, Borna Coric, Viktor Troicki and Grigor Dimitrov - have contracted the virus. When asked about their behavior in the Balkans, Dominic Thiem replied:
"It was strange. We played for weeks without an audience, so we were happy about the fans in the stadium. We thought that the government's measures were correct."
After sweating it out on the court, the players also visited a local night club in Belgrade to celebrate their success. That incident in particular caused a lot of outrage on social media and the tennis community at large.
Dominic Thiem seemed to be referring to the party - and the general lack of social distancing - when he said:
"We acted too naively, we are sorry for the consequences. I was very thoughtful, of course also surprised. I hope that everyone will be fit again soon. That shouldn't have happened."
Nevertheless, the three-time Grand Slam finalist is now looking forward to 'Thiem's 7,' an exhibition tournament that will take place in Kitzbühel next week. Gael Monfils pulled out of the competition last week, but the organizers are hopeful of getting a substitute player in time.
The matches will take place in front of 500 spectators, with the organizers promising that all the social distancing rules will be followed strictly. In that regard, Dominic Thiem mentioned that the players, teams and even the spectators would be tested if required.
"Everything we can do to protect health is being done," he stated.
Lastly, Thiem spoke about the resumption of the ATP tour and how it would be challenging to create a level playing field.
The Austrian player had confirmed earlier that he would not play the tournament in Washington, but would travel to the US and participate in the US Open as well as the Cincinnati Masters. The 26-year-old believes that the competitions should only resume when all the players can travel safely.
"All players must have the same chance," he signed off.