Denmark’s Frederik Nielsen has become the first player to be removed from this year’s Wimbledon Championships with a reason related to COVID-19.
The world No.82 doubles player was formally excluded from the Grand Slam on Saturday after being declared a ‘close contact’ of somebody who has tested positive for the virus. According to the BBC, it is Nielsen’s coach who tested positive upon arrival. The tennis player will now have to self-isolate for 10 days under rules set out by the UK government.
37-year-old Nielsen was set to play in the tournament alongside Croatia’s Franko Škugor. The duo had recently played in Halle and Eastbourne together but lost in the first round of those tournaments. TV 2 Denmark has received a SMS text from Nielson in which he say he ‘respects’ the decision to remove him from the Grand Slam.
“It’s a terrible pity that Franco Skugor and I are not going to play Wimbledon. But I respect the decision and must accept that I will be in isolation for the next ten days at the player hotel,” he said.
“I’m very sorry we did not get on the court for the tournament, which is my favorite Grand Slam tournament, but I have to fight my way through the isolation without my family, even though it will be difficult to do without them. It will be really hard to follow the tournament from my hotel room, but I hope then that I will have the opportunity to play the tournament in 2022.”
Nielsen won the men’s Wimbledon doubles title back in 2012 with Jonathan Marray. He is the grandson of Kurt Nielsen who was the first Danish man in history to play a Grand Slam final after being runner-up at The All England Club twice during the 1950s.
In other news, Tommy Paul has withdrawn from the men’s draw but it is not an issue related to COVID-19. He has been replaced by Japanese lucky loser Yasutaka Uchiyama who will play Carlos Alcaraz in the first round.
