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MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA – JANUARY 19: A ballboy on court during a match between Michaella Krajicek of the Netherlands and Ana Ivanovic of Serbia during day four of the 2012 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on January 19, 2012 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Lucas Dawson/Getty Images)
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MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA – JANUARY 19: A ballboy on court during a match between Michaella Krajicek of the Netherlands and Ana Ivanovic of Serbia during day four of the 2012 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on January 19, 2012 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Lucas Dawson/Getty Images)
As the tennis season has begun, players have assembled in Australia for the first Grand Slam. However, this season’s preparations have been different as compared to the previous years. Players have been in quarantine for a period of 14 days, following protocols issued by Tennis Australia.
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Players have been in such situations for the first time due to the effects of the coronavirus global pandemic. Recently, a few players, Alexander Zverev, Bianca Andreescu, Marin Cilic, and Diego Schwartzman, came together virtually and spoke on the various activities they engaged in during the 14-day period.
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NEW YORK, NEW YORK – SEPTEMBER 13: (L-R) Dominic Thiem of Austria shakes hands with Alexander Zverev of Germany after winning their Men’s Singles final match on Day Fourteen of the 2020 US Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on September 13, 2020, in the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
Alexander Zverev: Watching Netflix During Quarantine Ahead of Australian Open 2021
During the conversation, Germany’s Alexander Zverev, preparing for the Australian Open 2021 stated, “One thing is weird, I find myself doing a lot of things on the floor for some reason, watching Netflix on the floor, sleeping on the floor. For some reason, I think the floor is my best friend right now.”
The 2019 US Open champion, Bianca Andreescu said, “I can relate to that on a very high level. Other than that, I’ve been playing a lot of X Box. I’m playing Call of duty. I used to game a lot when I was younger around 12 or 13 and all of that is starting to surface back.”
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AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND: Bianca Andreescu of Canada celebrates after winning her semi-final game against Su-Wei Hsieh of China at the ASB Classic in Auckland, New Zealand. (Photo by Hannah Peters/Getty Images)
Marin Cilic: Got an Idea From Pablo Cuevas
The 2014 US Open winner, Marin Cilic got an idea from colleague Pablo Cuevas, who had lifted a mattress, placing it on the wall, and begun hitting the ball against it. The Croat said, “Cuevas’ story on Instagram putting a mattress on the ball and start hitting. That was an idea that I used one day and that was it.”
The 2020 French Open semi-finalist, Diego Schwartzman revealed his liking towards gaming. He did have an interesting point, which he stated, “I’ve been playing play station. I’m really bad at shooting but I think I can beat Sasha in FIFA for sure.”
Quarantine is over!🥳✅ @Bandreescu_ @AlexZverev @dieschwartzman and @cilic_marin reveal how they have made it through the last two weeks. pic.twitter.com/qPWFvBOjiq
— HEAD Tennis (@head_tennis) January 30, 2021
With the quarantine period now over, players will soon be seen competing at the Australian Open, the first Major of the new season. Authorities have done a tremendous job to ensure this event takes place smoothly, as the fears of COVID-19 still looms.
Also Read: “Just Sit on My Bed and Cry”: Bianca Andreescu Reveals Her Taxing Battle With Knee Injury
