Players wonder: "How will my body respond to competition again?"

     The tour can be really grueling but fun and filled with experience. But when it subtly ended all players had their time to rest. The hiatus has been too long since the coronavirus pandemic and players have practiced waiting for the season to continue. "How will my body respond to competition again?" Players are starting to wonder. It's been over three months and the average for anyone to be absent on court has reached its pinnacle.

     Ashleigh Barty, the WTA's No. 1 player sums the situation up as saying "I think it's about the possiblities of what's next?" The question is at the forefront of most players' minds and when the tour was at it's real tilt everyone knew what to expect. This is a different phenomenon because not only do players have to focus on keeping in shape, they have to think of when tournaments will resume. There are many tangibles to deal leaving most players sort 'in left field' as to the top importance in their physical regime. 

     Simona Halep, the No. 2 player is getting weary as to whether she will be prepared not only mentally but physically. "My longest break before lockdown has been 3-4 weeks and it was very difficult for me," she confessed. The hiatus is stretching into four months with possibly a few more before the tournament gets revved up and the concerns are present. "Will there be fans in the audience or will we have to perform in front of an empty stadium besides from a few people in my players' box?" Halep knows that training is key but says "You can train five hours a day for a whole year, if you are not on any official game, you're out when you step on court..." She exercises with questions in mind but hopes that when the time comes she'll be ready and won't have her body suffer too badly from the lack of competition. 

     Rafael Nadal's long ago nickname was 'The King of Clay'. It's been a while that he's been on clay or hard courts and he also has his doubts. He is doubtful that there will be tennis by the end of the year. He is also questioning how his body will respond. It was 15 years ago that Nadal talked about the 2005 Monte Carlo and his analysis for a better game saying "My return is fine and it would be great if I can add more power to my initial shot." Well, he's done that and more but says now that "When I hit a ball again my arm is going to hurt in several places...when you are out of action, the risk of an injury is a lot greater".​

Nadal was 15 years younger then and knows now that age isn't exactly on his side.

     Canada's Vasek Pospisil has experienced a long break from tennis just last year when he had surgery in January of 2019 to repair a herniated disc. He was able to return 6 months later and commented that he was "...So happy to be back and grateful for being healthy..." but returning rom injury and surgery are different from being well but not having any tournaments open to play. He confessed that with getting in shape, "I'm not really intending on pushing my body...that's for sure."

     The concerns and worries are there for most. Sure they will say "How will my body respond to competition again?" These thoughts are natural but Ashleigh Barty tries to sum up the sentiment to the WTA media explaining that "We need to make sure...health is looked after and everyone's prepared and ready to go for that day...It's something out of our control".

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2AA1JIj