Kei Nishikori becomes latest high-profile tennis player to test positive for Covid-19

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The 2014 US Open finalist Kei Nishikori has become the latest high-profile tennis player to test positive for Covid-19. Nishikori announced on social media that he has “very little symptoms”, but would still be self-isolating in Florida. With this year’s US Open a fortnight away, Nishikori still has a chance of participating in the tournament that has brought his best results. But he has pulled out of the build-up event, the Western & Southern Open, which is due to start on Thursday. Nishikori joins Grigor Dimitrov, Borna Coric and Viktor Troicki on the list of active players who have contracted the disease. Dimitrov has been the worst affected, finding that his strength has been slow to return and that he has suffered repeated relapses. Novak Djokovic, whose Adria Tour event spread the infection among a group of players and coaches, announced that he had tested positive soon after the Croatian leg of the event. But he then said that he had tested negative only a few days later. Nishikori must go on the “doubtful” list for the US Open, which has already lost Roger Federer to injury and Rafael Nadal to a strategic withdrawal. Meanwhile the women’s draw continues to suffer from big names declining to participate. World No8 Belinda Bencic joined the exodus on Saturday, after Biana Andreescu said on Friday that she would not be defending her title on fitness grounds. This means that five of the top eight women on the rankings table have already opted out. World No2 Simona Halep – who lifted the Prague Open title on Sunday – would be the top seed if she attended, in the absence of Ashleigh Barty. But at her post-victory press briefing in Prague, Halep refused to clarify her plans, saying that she would announce a decision on Monday. Although her public statements have been sceptical this far, her chances of landing a first US Open title would surely he strong if she opted to make the trip. In the other WTA event to conclude on Sunday, Jennifer Brady of the USA beat Switzerland’s Jill Teichmann in the final of the Top Seed Open in Lexington, Kentucky. Brady had already beaten 16-year-old sensation Coco Gauff in Saturday’s semi-final and will climb to a career high of No40 in the world. And the respective men’s and women’s champions of the UK Pro Series Classic Week in Weybridge are Liam Broady and 17-year-old Emma Raducanu.

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