New concerns over US Open

Grand Slam Tennis understands from sources close to the USTA that they are having second thoughts about the viability of the US Open taking place in New York on 31 August after all.

Yesterday we reported that Serena Williams’ coach Patrick Mouratoglou claimed “I don’t think it (the US Open) can happen”

Apparently many players too are having second thoughts, and not prepared to travel to New York, not least because of the fallout surrounding Novak Djokovic’s well intentioned but misguided Adria Tour.

This was further exacerbated last weekend when Alexander Zverev broke his own avowed promise to “self-isolate for fourteen days” after his involvement in the close encounters practiced at the Novak Djokovic hosted event in Serbia, by attending a multi-millionaire fashion designer’s ram packed party in an exclusive Private Beach Club on the Cote d’Azur

Alarmed by rising cases around the United States, New York City  Mayor Bill de Blasio  today said “we will not resume indoor dining next week”

Intending travellers from sixteen US states, including California and Florida where many American ATP and WTA players live, are now forced to quarantine for fourteen days on arrival in NYC.

That decision came as New York officials became increasingly concerned that the increase in virus cases in more than 30 states could trickle back to New York, which has recently managed to rein in the outbreak.

Two weeks ago, The USTA made the surprise announcement that the US Open would go ahead on schedule,, with the blessing of Governor Andrew Cuomo, albeit behind closed doors with a tightly controlled anti-covid bubble surrounding the players and officials.

Mouratoglou added “So, I don’t know how reasonable that is to try to make it happen.

And I don’t know if last minute the governor of New York will decide to cancel it because health comes first.”

He may well soon be proved right.