Novak Djokovic under threat again as Grigor Dimitrov tests positive for coronavirus
All did not seem well for Bulgarian tennis ace Grigor Dimitrov as he finished his Adria Tour match against Borna Coric on Saturday. And back home in Monaco, the World No. 19 has now revealed that he has tested positive for COVID-19, making him the highest profile tennis player yet to fall prey to the virus. The development has also once again put World No. 1 Novak Djokovic - and the other participants of his ongoing Adria Tour - under threat.
Grigor Dimitrov seemed visibly under the weather as he walked towards the net defeated against Coric, and chose to give a fist-bump to his victorious opponent and the chair umpire rather than the conventional handshake. While this might not have seemed peculiar under normal circumstances, Dimitrov's act raised plenty of eyebrows given the current situation of the coronavirus pandemic.
The worst fears of tennis fans were quickly realized when the Bulgarian announced on Sunday that he had indeed caught the virus.
Grigor Dimitrov was later also slated to play against Novak Djokovic, but he pulled out at the last minute stating health concerns.
"This is a consequence of physical effort and exposure to the sun in the past few days, and I will have to miss the last day in Zadar," Dimitrov had said at the time.
The three-time Grand Slam semifinalist later took to Instagram to announce the result of his test and declared that he will be self-isolating starting from today. Grigor Dimitrov also said he was aware of the gravity of the situation, and was quick to apologize in case he had unknowingly transmitted the virus during his time at the Adria Tour.
The Bulgarian also urged all other people who came in contact with him over the tour to get themselves tested and take precautionary measures.
The Monaco resident did not wait for Sunday's closing ceremony of the Zadar leg of the Adria Tour, and quickly traveled back home to get tested for the virus.
Novak Djokovic & Co under the scanner
The recent development with Grigor Dimitrov has once again put the spotlight on World No. 1 Novak Djokovic. The Serbian tennis legend was already feared to be under threat of the virus when he shared the stage with basketball player Nikola Jankovic, who later tested positive for coronavirus.
It is unclear at the moment if Novak Djokovic did get tested himself for the virus. Right now it is anyone's guess as to whether the Serb was a carrier of the virus for Grigor Dimitrov.
World No. 3 Dominic Thiem and World No. 7 Alexander Zverev were the other high profile tennis players to have participated in the Adria Tour, along with Novak Djokovic and Grigor Dimitrov. The star players had also spent the night partying along with Djokovic and others in Belgrade after the conclusion of the Belgrade leg, which again unsurprisingly drew a lot of criticism given the nature of the global pandemic.
As per reports Dominic Thiem did get tested for coronavirus before he could travel to his next destination in Nice for the Ultimate Tennis Showdown, and fortunately the Austrian's test reports were negative. The World No. 3 participated only in the Belgrade leg of the Adria Tour, and hence was not around Grigor Dimitrov in the week before the Bulgarian tested positive.
Alexander Zverev, however, has been with Novak Djokovic and Grigor Dimitrov through both legs of the Adria Tour so far. That puts him under a big risk of having caught the virus.
Other players who are under direct threat of having contracted the virus from Grigor Dimitrov are Borna Coric and the chair umpire for their match, as well as the remaining participants of the Zadar leg of the Adria Tour including Marin Cilic and Andrey Rublev.
The Adria Tour was also held without any restrictions on the crowd, unlike the sporting events that have resumed elsewhere. The Belgrade leg saw around 4,000 people attend the showcase event, with similar numbers this weekend in Zadar. Novak Djokovic was heavily criticized for this decision but he later explained that the outbreak of the virus is much more controlled in Serbia and the neighboring Balkan countries than the rest of the world.
However, Grigor Dimitrov testing positive could now cause a chain of repercussions that would go beyond just tennis. Novak Djokovic may have a lot of explaining to do if any more players from the Adria Tour are found to have contracted the virus.
Zadar leg of Adria Tour called off
As per a recent announcement from Adria Tour's event director Goran Ivanisevic, the final of the Zadar leg of the Adria Tour - between Novak Djokovic and Andrey Rublev - has been called off.