Andrea Petkovic: Tennis Players Should Take a Stand Against Racism

Former Top 10 player Andrea Petkovic, who recently underwent surgery on her left knee, says that professional tennis players should take a stand against racism.

According to Sueddeutsche. Petkovic says, "We, in particular, are athletes who play abroad, get to know foreign cultures. We are seen as role models and should position ourselves against racism again and again."

Petkovic says that she was welcomed when she came from the former Yugoslavia to Germany but sees that things are not as they used to these days. "I myself am the daughter of a migrant family who came to Germany from the former Yugoslavia and was warmly welcomed here. Germany made this success possible for me, without the support of the German Tennis Association I would never have made it this far. It makes me sad to see how things are developing, that the voices are getting louder from the right. However, a large majority in Germany are still resisting it."

On her comeback to the courts, Petkovic, who has been working on German television in the past few months, says that she will play a few more tournaments this year but knows that her body is telling her to stop and that she also plans to publish a book based on her life. "I definitely want to play this year and maybe add the Australian Open 2021 to it. There won't be that many tournaments anymore. I really need to listen to my body. They (the book) are stories from my life, a coming-of-age story of a young woman who grows up in an extraordinary world."

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2OVLo56