Novak Djokovic's Adria Tour didn't end well, but US Open will take place: John McEnroe
Novak Djokovic's Adria Tour controversy, coupled with American player Frances Tiafoe testing positive for COVID-19, has led to the 2020 edition of the US Open being put under the scanner over safety issues.
Four players - Borna Coric, Viktor Troicki, Grigor Dimitrov and Novak Djokovic himself - tested positive for COVID-19 during the second stage of the Adria Tour in Croatia. The tournament was hosted and funded by Novak Djokovic and members of his family, and generated a lot of heat for the Serb as host and World No. 1.
When Tiafoe had to withdraw from the Atlanta event just a week later due to COVID-19, multiple concerns about the staging of the US Open were raised - by both fans and experts. And now, John McEnroe has weighed in on the issue too.
We wondered if Novak Djokovic's Adria Tour was real: John McEnroe
In an interview with BBC's Sue Barker, former World No. 1 John McEnroe claimed that US Open will likely go ahead regardless of the 'bizarre situation' the world finds itself in. McEnroe reiterated, however, that the situation in the United States is worrying.
"What tennis fans and players want - both are categories where I think I belong - is that the US Open takes place, no matter how weird it can be to play without spectators," McEnroe said.
"For a month you will have to wait and see," the seven-time Grand Slam champion added. "Even if the number of cases explodes in Florida or elsewhere in the United States, in New York the situation is better than before. Today I think the tournament will take place. I think players will be as protected as possible. I do not know the protocol, the constraints that will be put in place, there are many issues to be resolved in the coming weeks."
The American former champion also spoke about Novak Djokovic's Adria Tour and the lessons that can be learned from the mistakes made by the organisers.
"When we see what happened to Djokovic, when we saw these full stands, we wondered if it was real. It was strange and not surprisingly, it didn't end well. I hope that we will learn the necessary lessons," McEnroe said.
Who will play the US Open?
Novak Djokovic had claimed earlier that his presence at the US Open was unsure given that the virus was still at large in the United States. "I can assure that I will not play the Washington tournament, while Cincinnati would be planned if I finally played the US Open, but I still do not know if I will be there," the Serb had said.
er top players - including the likes of Dominic Thiem, Simona Halep and Rafael Nadal - have all relayed their concerns about the US Open.
Thiem recently spoke about how at least 3 or 4 people need to be allowed in the entourage of each player. That said, when the restart to the season was announced, the Austrian had expressed his excitement at playing both Cincinnati (in New York) and the US Open.
Rafael Nadal had also claimed earlier that it was difficult for him to think about travelling to the United States during the pandemic. The Spaniard then announced he would be playing the Madrid Masters (which will start the day after the US Open final), following which he returned to practicing on clay - all but confirming that he won't defend his title at Flushing Meadows.