'Tennis without Roger Federer is always...', says former Top 5

The top three players in the ATP ranking (Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Dominic Thiem) and the great stars of women's tennis (Serena Williams, Naomi Osaka and Simona Halep) had the privilege of being able to spend the quarantine in Adelaide rather than Melbourne. This unequal treatment has aroused countless criticisms, as well as fueling resentment from Australian public opinion. The special permission granted to players to be able to play the first seasonal Grand Slam was not appreciated by the indigenous population, considering that there are still 37,000 Australians waiting to return to their country. The top players were also allowed to bring a larger entourage than their colleagues, some of whom are unable to train after the positive cases emerged on charter flights. During an interview with Tagblatt, WTA number 12 Belinda Bencic reflected at length on the controversy of the last few days. Unlike many other tennis players, the Swiss seems to understand the privileges that have been assigned to the strongest. The Swiss tennis starlet has also lamented the withdrawal of compatriot Roger Federer from the Australian Open this year.

Bencic on Roger Federer

"They deserve these privileges because they are the best and because they have done the most for tennis," Belinda Bencic said. "But please don't talk about equality and fairness." Belinda Bencic, however, took the opportunity to praise Novak Djokovic for his efforts to help players undergoing strict quarantine conditions in Melbourne. Bencic asserted that she appreciates Djokovic's efforts even if they came all the way from Adelaide. "I appreciate, that Novak Djokovic did put in the effort to improve the conditions for those players affected from the hard quarantine in Melbourne. I thought, this was very nice from him," Bencic said. Swiss tennis starlet Belinda Bencic has lamented the withdrawal of compatriot Roger Federer from the Australian Open this year. Doubtlessly one of the top stars in the men’s draw at the year’s first Grand Slam, this is the first time since Roger Federer started playing Majors that he won’t be seen sweeping past opponents at Melbourne Park. Be that as it may, Bencic aptly summed up the mood of the tennis world around his withdrawal, saying the game without her more illustrious peer isn’t quite the same. “The whole tennis world misses Roger Federer. Tennis without him is always sadder. I think and hope and am very confident that he will come back soon. At least, he didn’t miss much last year,” said Bencic, who is out of quarantine ahead of the Australian Open.

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/3pjFuL3