Dimitrov tests positive for COVID-19, Adria Tour final cancelled

Bengaluru, June 22: The finals of the Adria Tour tennis exhibition tournament in Croatia was cancelled after Bulgaria's Grigor Dimitrov tested positive for the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

The 29-year-old ATP world No. 19, who was competing in the tournament before pulling out midway after feeling uneasiness during the weekend, became the highest-profile tennis player to be tested positive for COVID-19 so far.

The final of the Croatia event in the coastal resort of Zadar, the second leg of the tour which would have featured ATP world No.1 Novak Djokovic and Russian Andrey Rublev, was cancelled as a result.

"I want to reach out and let my fans and friends know that I tested positive back in Monaco for COVID-19," Dimitrov posted on Instagram.

"I want to make sure anyone who has been in contact with me during these past days gets tested and takes the necessary precautions.

"I'm so sorry for any harm I might've caused. I'm back home now and recovering. Thanks for your support and please stay safe and healthy."

Dimitrov pulled out of the tournament on after he felt unwell following his opening singles match against Croatian Borna Coric.

With international tennis suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Djokovic organised the Adria Tour as a charity event designated to be contested over four legs across the former Yugoslavia.

Austria's world number three Dominic Thiem won the opening leg in Belgrade, where a capacity 4,000 crowd turned up on each day at Djokovic's tennis centre by the Danube river.

With both Serbia and Croatia easing lockdown measures weeks before the event, players were not obliged to observe social distancing rules in either country and were seen embracing at the net at the end of their matches.

Fans in Croatia, however, were subject to the rules and had to keep their distance, meaning that the 9,000-capacity Visnjik tennis complex was half-full for the event.

The third leg due in Montenegro on June 27 and 28 was scrapped last week over coronavirus concerns while the final leg, scheduled for July 3 and 4 in Bosnia's Banja Luka, is now likely to be called off.

(With inputs from Agencies)