Thiem on the US Open bubble: “There is no safer place in the world”

Austrian Dominic Thiem, number 3 of the ATP, assured this Sunday that the bubble created by the US Tennis Association (USTA) to celebrate the US Open It is the safest place in the world a few hours after knowing the first positive for coronavirus of a tennis player who is in the facilities and who was going to participate in the tournament.

“I think there is no safer place in the world right now. Maybe if you lock yourself in a cave, or are in the middle of the sea, I don't know. In any case this is very safe, we are in a bubble, “Thiem said at a virtual press conference.

“Let's hope no one else is infected,” he said about the positive of the French tennis player Benoit Paire, which, as confirmed by the French newspaper “L'Équipe”, has had to withdraw from the competition after being infected.

The USTA confirmed this Sunday that one of the players who had planned to participate in the US Open tested positive for coronavirus, although it did not reveal his identity, but assured that he had not had symptoms of COVID-19.

“There are so many people who are part of the tournament. The possibility of someone testing positive is very high. I only wish Benoit the best.”added.

Thiem, who fell in the early rounds of the Cincinnati Masters, said he hopes he will do better at the US Open, though he noted that it is “rare.” lose a tournament and continue playing on the same courts in the next championship, since both competitions will take place in the same facilities to avoid contagion.

“Usually if you lose, you are super angry and disappointed, but you get on a plane and go somewhere else. It is easier to forget. But here you are in the same place for a long time, so it is not easy to forget a loss, “he admitted.