The head of the Serbian government has jumped to the defence of Novak Dkokovic over the controversy-stricken Adira Tour that was cancelled last week after an outbreak of COVID-19.
Ana Brnabić told national TV station PinkTV that the intentions of the world No.1 were always to help promote the region and raise money for charity. The Adria Tour took place in Belgrade, Serbia and Zadar, Croatia before it was scrapped. During the two events organizers were criticised for a lack of social distancing and players attending parties despite the ongoing pandemic which has killed more than 500,000 people worldwide. In Zadar, tests revealed that a series of players and coaches had contracted the virus, including event founder Djokovic who has been heavily criticized for his involvement.
“Every part of him. He tried to do something good for the whole region,” Brnabić said in an interview with PinkTV.
“To put politics aside and help young and non-established tennis players, as well as to raise money for humanitarian purposes.
“If they could shift the blame on me personally, as prime minister, and leave Novak alone, I would love it,” she added.
The event was done in accordance with national COVID-19 rules and therefore no laws were actually broken. However, many have pointed out that the organizers failed to treat the players attending as high risk considering they regularly travel between various countries. During press conferences, they all sat next to each other and shared microphones between them.
Brnabić, who has been the head of the Serbian government since 2017, has admitted that she made a mistake by easing safety measures for the tournament to take place. On Monday the country announced stricter COVID-19 measures following a rise in cases with people in Belgrade now required to wear masks in indoor spaces as well as on public transport.
“If they (the public) could shift that blame on me as the Prime Minister of Serbia, and leave him alone, I would like that the most in the world,” she said.
“It is our fault, we relaxed the measures, if we had not, this tournament would not have taken place, so he listened to our recommendations and it is my fault, not Novak Djokovic’s.”
Djokovic has been in isolation with his wife, who has also tested positive for COVID-19. Since releasing a statement to confirm his positive test, the 17-time grand slam champion hasn’t spoken out in public. Although he did post a quote on Instagram from Patriarch Pavle, who was the 44th Patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church, that seemingly addressed the criticism he is facing.
“Boats don’t sink because of the water that surrounds them, but because of the water that enters into them. Don’t allow the surroundings to get inside you and to drag you to the bottom,” the quote reads.
Who got infected around the time of the Adria Tour?
- Novak Djokovic
- Grigor Dimitrov
- Borna Coric
- Goran Ivanisevic
- Viktor Troicki (played in Belgrade only)
- Dimitrov’s coach, Kristijan Groh
- Djokovic’s fitness trainer, Marko Paniki
Note: tests do no prove where players have caught the virus or who was the first.
