The number three in the world, Stefanos Tsitsipas, said he would only be vaccinated against COVID-19 if it were mandatory to compete in tennis. Although the ATP men’s circuit has publicly encouraged players to get vaccinated, the 23-year-old Greek is among those who still have reserves.
“No one has told me anything. No one has made it mandatory to get vaccinated,” he told reporters, when asked if he would get vaccinated while competing in the United States. “At some point I’ll have to do it, I’m pretty sure about it, but it hasn’t been mandatory to compete so far so I haven’t, no,” added Tsitsipas, who received a first-round bye at the Masters 1000 tournament in Cincinnati.
He reached the final of the French Open in June, but suffered a surprising first-round elimination at Wimbledon, where he told reporters that it was difficult for him to live and compete in the COVID-19 “bubble.”
The COVID-19 vaccine has divided opinion within tennis.
World No. 1 Novak Djokovic said in April that he hoped the COVID-19 vaccine would not become mandatory for competing players and has declined to answer questions about his own vaccination status. However, his teammates Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal, winners of 20 Grand Slams, believe that athletes must do their part to regain some normality.
Federer stated in May that he had received the vaccine from Pfizer-BioNTech, while Nadal said: “The only way out of this nightmare is vaccination. Our responsibility as human beings is to accept it. I know there is a percentage of people who will suffer the effects. side effects, but the effects of the virus are worse. “
Spectators will not be able to attend this month’s US Open qualifying rounds due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the United States Tennis Association (USTA) reported last week. The USTA previously said it would allow full fan capacity for the main part of the tournament.