“After a long reflection, I decided not to play the US Open this year. The situation is very complicated in the world, the cases of Covid-19 keep increasing and it seems that we have no control over it. I would have liked not to have to make such a decision but I decided to follow my heart and for the moment, I prefer not to travel. ” Tuesday evening, Rafael Nadal confirmed what the tennis world had already sensed for a few weeks. As a precaution, the Spaniard has decided not to defend his title in New York from August 31 to September 13. A real blow to the American Grand Slam which, already rickety, did not need this.
Beyond even the case of the US Open, this package of Nadal, which follows the announcement of the premature end of the season of Roger Federer on June 10 due to a right knee injury - but also in partly due to the current context - symbolizes the inability of the little yellow ball to bounce again. Indeed, this Tuesday was also formalized the cancellation of the Masters 1000 in Madrid, which should have been held in the wake of the New York Grand Slam, from September 13 to 20. A deletion that leaves a huge void in the calendar, with the only tournament in Rome - from September 20 to 27 - to serve as preparation for Roland Garros (September 27-October 11). An Italian competition remains questionable because of the fourteen imposed on any person setting foot in the Boot from the United States. This would not leave any chance for players still qualified for the second week of the US Open to be able to compete in this Masters 1000.
Monfils, Tsonga and Wawrinka also have an impasse
Can we then imagine the players jumping from one Grand Slam to another, from a hard surface to clay, without the slightest preparation? By formalizing his package, Nadal gave his point of view on the issue. He is not the only one. The French Gaël Monfils and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga will also be deadlocked, as will top 20 members like Fabio Fognini and Stanislas Wawrinka. In women too, a first wave of forfeits beheaded the New York tournament of several headliners, such as world number 1 Ashleigh Barty. And nothing says that a second wave is not coming, as some and some wonder about the merits of playing such a competition while the United States is hit by an unprecedented health crisis.
Sad first since 1999
In fact, the US Open today has no other raison d'être than its financial aspect. In the columns of L'Equipe , Monday, Richard Gasquet had been very clear on the subject by releasing: "If there is not the US Open, it is the key under the door for some." An opinion shared by Argentine Diego Schwartzman: "I'm going to play it because I need it and it's my job." But if some have no choice, what will happen to Novak Djokovic? The presence or not of the world number 1 now depends on the little sporting interest remaining for this abandoned Grand Slam. So far, the Serbian seems ready to fly to the Big Apple. But a turnaround remains possible. The only certainty at the moment: if the US Open takes place, it will be the first Grand Slam since the Australian Open in 1999 to take place without Nadal and Federer. Which already says it all.
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