"Lied in our faces" - Diego Schwartzman with sharp criticism of the USTA
Diego Schwartzman has sharply criticized the USTA for dealing with Guido Pella and Hugo Dellien . The two players were not allowed to participate in the Cincinnati tournament after a positive corona test by their joint fitness coach.
by Nikolaus Fink
last edit: Aug 24, 2020, 06:29 pm
It was the news that caused the greatest excitement in the tennis circuit in recent days: Guido Pella and Hugo Dellien were not allowed to participate in the Cincinnati ATP Masters 1000 tournament due to a positive COVID-19 test of their fitness trainer - and that although the two of them had several negative results themselves.
Djokovic, Murray and Medvedev also surprised
World number one Novak Djokovic was one of the first players to criticize the US Tennis Association's decision. "On a Zoom call a few weeks ago, the USTA's chief doctor informed us that if a player does not share a room with his coach, physiotherapist or someone on his team who is infected, his own results will be negative can still take part in the tournament, "the Serb told ESPN.
The players weren't sure what the rules actually were.
Andy Murray
With Daniil Medvedev and Andy Murray, two other world-class players let their incomprehension run wild. "Some of the players are now saying that they would not have come with a coach or a physiotherapist if they had known this was being done. I am not saying that it is not the right decision, but the players were not clear about what the rules actually are, "said Murray. Medvedev spoke out in favor of allowing Dellien and Pella to participate in the tournament because of the negative results.
Another well-known professional, Diego Schwartzman , has now commented on the shit - and, like his colleagues, did not leave the USTA happy: "The situation that you have to go through after the fourth negative test is very unfair. It seems to me, that something was wrong. "
USTA: "No discretionary decision"
But the Argentine became even clearer: "Almost 100 percent of the players don't like this decision. We had a lot of discussions with the people from the USTA about the guidelines and they lied to our faces."
The reaction of the US tennis association was not long in coming. USTA spokesman Chris Widmaier defended the measures: “Simply put, people who are in close contact with the infected person must be quarantined for 14 days. This is not a discretionary decision. "
It is still unclear whether Pella and Dellien can take part in the US Open, which begins on August 31.