Adria Tour: The long silence of Novak Djokovic
"Horror show", "catastrophe", "crazy": The party tour of the tennis stars across the Balkans leaves their colleagues indignant. In the center of the criticism: Novak Djokovic , the co-organizer has temporarily disappeared.
by SID
last edit:
Jun 23, 2020, 12:56 pm
Novak Djokovic took his time to see things. Much time. Even on the second morning after the abrupt end of the tennis party in the Balkans, the tennis world was still eagerly awaiting their number one statement. After all, three players had been infected with the corona virus on Djokovic's Adriatic tour. But Djokovic said nothing - others spoke for it.
Double player Bruno Soares, a member of the player council under President Djokovic, spoke of a "horror show" at GloboEsporte. The Brazilian accused the group of highly paid superstars of having acted "enormously irresponsible and extremely immature". ATP President Andrea Gaudenzi even compared Djokovic, Zverev and Co. to stubborn villains.
Dimitrov carried the virus to Monte Carlo
"It's a bit like teaching your kids to always ride a helmet with a helmet. First they say no, no, no. Only when they fall off their bikes do they wear the helmet," the Italian told The New York Times . But it is different from this picture: The tennis players that Djokovic had gathered around on his show trip whistled for their role model function, security and thus endangered many.
The Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov carried the virus to his adopted home of Monte Carlo, the Croatian Borna Coric published his illness and apology. Viktor Troicki, one of the best buddies on the tour for his Serbian compatriot Djokovic, has been tested just as positively as his pregnant wife is said to have. Two coaches are also said to have been infected - and the list can easily become much longer.
The main actors appeared in Belgrade and Zadar / Croatia as if the virus stopped at the country's borders. For football, basketball, in the stands or striptease in a stuffy club: Nobody kept a distance here, not even to the many young fans. That was well documented. As if Djokovic wanted to prove to the world how harmless this virus is - and in general: We have followed all government regulations, the 33-year-old claimed at Eurosport.
Murray asks for control over the measures
The tour's corona lockdown doesn't seem to get Djokovic. He is critical to rejection of vaccinations, the contact with self-proclaimed alchemist Chervin Jafarieh and her Instagram conversation about the possibility of "transforming the most toxic food or the most polluted water into the most healing water" caused a shake of the head.
While officials and players were fighting behind the scenes for a compromise to restart the professional tour under strict hygiene regulations, Djokovic was absent. He also said that the planned regulations for the US Open were too "extreme" for him, and he still remains open to the Grand Slam tournament in New York (from August 31).
Perhaps with his irresponsible Adria tour, he contributed to the fact that the resumption of the professional tours was discussed again. British Olympic champion Andy Murray, who has been a companion of Djokovic for 20 years, raised the question on Monday how the strict isolation of the players should be monitored during the tournaments. If the industry leader doesn't follow the rules, the concept is not the problem.
"For some, their success must have gone to their heads," said national coach Barbara Rittner to the Cologne city gazette. What does Novak Djokovic say about the fierce criticism from around the world? According to Serbian media, he only wanted to publicly declare himself after the result of his Corona test on Tuesday.