Canada’s Bianca Andreescu has suffered another setback to her season after being forced to withdraw from the Italian Open due to COVID-19 rules.
The former US Open champion was warned that if she travelled to Italy it was possible that she may have to go into quarantine again after recently testing positive for the virus upon arrival in Madrid. She followed local health and safety guidelines following the positive result before being allowed to return back to training in recent days. However her return to the Tour has now been delayed further.
“Although I have tested negative following my isolation period in Madrid and having been back in full training the last few days, the Italian Government rules put me at risk of being isolated again if I travel to Italy, so unfortunately I have to withdraw from the Italian Open this year,” Andreescu said in a post on Instagram.
20-year-old Andreescu hasn’t played on the Tour since the Miami Open where she was forced to retire during the final against Ash Barty due to a foot injury. Overall she has played just three tournaments so far this year and has achieved a win-loss of 9-3. She also reached the second round of the Australian Open and then the semi-finals of the Phillip Island Trophy in Melbourne.
Rome, which is the last major clay court event before the French Open, is taking place amid strict COVID-19 rules being implemented by the local health authorities. The tournament will initially start behind closed doors but will be opened to fans later in the week. From the third round onwards the tournament is allowed to welcome 25% of its capacity which works out to be roughly 5000 people. There will be fixed seating and different entry points.
“It is the responsibility of the local health authorities to define the details of the operational aspects useful for a better implementation of the measures for the prevention and containment of the infection,” said Italian Sport Undersecretary Valentina Vezzali.
Andreescu has been replaced in the draw by France’s Kristina Mladenovic.
