Former Wimbledon champion Goran Ivanisevic, who now coaches Novak Djokovic and attended the top-ranked player’s exhibition series in Serbia and Croatia this month, has tested positive for coronavirus.
The Croatian great, who won his only Grand Slam title at the All England Club in 2001, wrote on Instagram that he tested positive after two negative tests in the last 10 days.
“I would like to inform everyone who has been in contact with me that I tested positive and ask them to take extra good care of themselves and their loved ones,” Ivanisevic wrote.
“I will continue to self-isolate as I have been doing already.”
Ivanisevic, who said he has no symptoms, attended the Adria Tour exhibition series, a charity event hosted by Djokovic in Belgrade and at the Adriatic resort of Zadar in Croatia. Four players from those events, including Djokovic, tested positive for the virus. Grigor Dimitrov, Borna Coric and Viktor Troicki returned positive tests, as did Djokovic’s wife, Jelena.
Thousands of spectators attended the matches in Belgrade and Zadar, and no social distancing was observed. The final for the event in Croatia was cancelled and subsequent matches in other countries were also called off.
Dominic Thiem, who won the opening event in Belgrade on 14 June, said on Thursday that he has returned five negative results from as many tests.
Djokovic, a 17-time Grand Slam champion who has previously said he was against taking a vaccine for the virus even if it becomes mandatory for travel, admitted on Tuesday it had been “too soon” to host such an event.
The coronavirus outbreak led to the suspension of the ATP and WTA professional tennis tours in March. Plans were announced last week for the sport’s sanctioned events to return in August.
But the infections have raised questions about the full-fledged return of competitive tennis, including the US Open, which is scheduled to begin on 31 August without spectators. Djokovic has called the rules to keep everyone safe at the US Open “extreme”.
AP
