Stan Wawrinka complains about transport service at Italian Open 2023
Stan Wawrinka arrived in Rome ahead of the Italian Open 2023 and faced some delays with his transport. Wawrinka then proceeded to talk about his experience on social media.
The Swiss has not had a great start to his clay season, suffering early exits at both the Madrid Open and the Monte-Carlo Masters. He also competed at the maiden Srpska Open, where he fell to Frenchman Luca Van Assche in the opening round.
Wawrinka will now participate in the Italian Open, where he reached the Round of 16 last year.
While waiting for transport on his arrival, Wawrinka took to social media to express his displeasure at the organizers for the delay in his pick-up. He used the timer and sleepyhead emojis and wrote:
"Is @InteBNLdItalia the worst @atptour transportation service?" read Wawrinka's post.
Is @InteBNLdItalia the worst @atptour transportation service ? β³β³π΄π΄
Tennis fans were quick to respond to Wawrinka's tweet, with some criticizing him for complaining while others pointing out the notorious traffic in the Italian capital.
Top tennis players to compete at Italian Open 2023
The 2023 Italian Open is set to begin from Wednesday, May 10. The ATP 1000 Masters and WTA 1000 event will be headlined by Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz, Iga Swiatek, and Aryna Sabalenka.
Top seed and two-time defending champion Iga Swiatek as well as second seed Aryna Sabalenka have received a first-round bye, alongside Jessica Pegula and Ons Jabeur.
Petra Kvitova and Belinda Bencic have withdrawn from the 2023 Italian Open due to injuries.
The women's side is also likely to see strong challenges from the likes of Elena Rybakina and Caroline Garcia.
Karolina Pliskova, who was at the WTA draw ceremony, shared her memories of the tournament.
"It is one of my best tournaments. I have great memories here and I always enjoy playing here," she said.
The details of the draw ceremony were later posted on the tournament's official Twitter channel.
"The @WTA women's singles draw ceremony took place in the heart of Rome," they posted.
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The @WTA womenβs singles draw ceremony took place in the heart of Rome β€οΈβπ₯π
πππππ πππ πΆππππ πππππ β¨
#IBI23 | @SporteSaluteSpA https://t.co/OLPrcijJcO
The men's side, meanwhile, is headlined by top seed Novak Djokovic. The Serb has received a first-round bye along with second seed Carlos Alcaraz and third seed Daniil Medvedev.
10-time Italian Open champion Rafael Nadal has withdrawn due to injury.
Former champion Alexander Zverev is likely to pose a strong challenge alongside Stefanos Tsitsipas and Holger Rune.
This is the first time that the outdoor clay court tournament has been expanded to a 12-day event.