Erste Bank Open: A tennis tournament under the COVID sword of Damocles
Yesterday, Saturday, the top-ranked Erste Bank Open started in the Wiener Stadthalle. To the delight of a select few who are allowed to be part of the severely decimated backdrop.
by Michael Rothschädl
last edit: Oct 25, 2020, 06:18 pm
If Dominic Thiem had strolled into the town hall with his buddy Lucas Leitner on the first day of the Erste Bank Open last year, would have sat in the first upper tier and calmly watched the match of his compatriot Alex Erler, he would probably not have got very far. The 27-year-old is the crowd favorite in the Austrian capital and is the spearhead of tennis in the Alpine republic.
Hardly a moment shows as well as this how extraordinary, how bizarre and how different events and especially tennis tournaments are at the time of COVID-19. Despite top-level tennis on Center Court, the upper tiers are empty and the 1000 spectators admitted to the event in the Wiener Stadthalle adorn the stadium only sparsely - very sparsely.
The fact that this Erste Bank Open 2020 is a very special edition of the traditional Vienna ATP event becomes clear as soon as you enter the town hall: In order to be allowed to enter, the fever is measured, the mouth and nose protection must be worn - namely always. It was not for nothing that tournament director Herwig Straka said in the run-up to the tournament that players and fans would go to the safest place in Vienna.
Numbers in Austria continue to rise
And then there is (finally) tennis to be seen. Top tennis. Seasoned top players are already playing in the Austrian capital during qualification, and seven of the ten best men in the tennis world will follow them on Monday. So while Lucas Miedler and the French Open round of 16 Lorenzo Sonego for the honor of being allowed to be involved in this field, matches, the omnipresent COVID-19 topic would have almost faded into the background. Despite a mask requirement. Despite empty ranks.
But then a glance at the constant companion, a glance at the smartphone, shows: The numbers in Austria are still increasing. The Alpine republic recorded 3,600 new infections on Saturday, more than ever before. And suddenly it is clear why there are only about 1000 people sitting in a gigantic arena, why the distance is meticulously maintained and why masks instead of made-up cheeks shape the scene in the Wiener Stadthalle.