Australian Open: heat is the biggest problem for players in quarantine?
14 days without tennis? Or sensible fitness training? Above all, the unusual heat could be a problem for the players in Melbourne.
by Florian Goosmann
last edit: Jan 24, 2021, 09:50 am
This was explained by Fabien Cosmao, Bianca Andreescu's fitness coach.
The entire preparation will certainly not be obsolete due to the time-out , he told tennsmajors.com . Because there is an opportunity to continue working on this in the hotel. "The players got a bike in their room, also dumbbells, in addition to the equipment they already have with them. The body stays active." In addition, many zoom sessions would be carried out with their trainers, including him with Andreescu. "The players do an average of one and a half hours of physical training in their rooms, plus other exercises, such as shadow tennis."
February is even hotter in Melbourne
The problem is, from his point of view: the Australian temperatures, which can easily reach 40 degrees. And in return, the players who are stuck in the hotel. "The players in the (complete) quarantine do not have the opportunity to get used to the heat for two weeks. The players who can get out therefore have a great advantage," said Cosmao.
"Bianca, for example, needs her time to acclimatize. A week is a bit short for that. So some players may stumble in their first round matches around lunchtime." Especially since the tournament has been postponed by three weeks, "in February it's even hotter". For the gentlemen, with three winning sets, all of this is probably even harder.
Of course, there is also a lot missing in terms of punch training. The supporting muscles will not work with the usual intensity and will sometimes forget special movements - the risk of injury increases.
"Some completely lose the feeling"
But the biggest problem is tennis itself, says Cosmao. "You normally spend three or four hours on the pitch at this point in preparation. Now it's zero." Some players would completely lose the feeling after a few days without hit training, while others would have no problems. "We'll see how things go at the Australian Open. Maybe there will be a few surprises."