Italian Quarantine Rules Threaten Simona Halep's Attendance At The Palermo Tournament

Simona Halep (Instagram @simonahalep)

JAKARTA - The Palermo Ladies Open tournament is under threat without the presence of world number two Simona Halep. The Italian government decided to impose a mandatory 14-day quarantine for people arriving from Romania and Bulgaria amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Italian Health Minister Roberto Speranza said Friday 24 July that people who have been in Romania and Bulgaria in the past 14 days will be quarantined upon arrival in Italy. This step was taken to prevent the import of COVID-19 cases.

Palermo will mark the first professional tennis event for both the WTA and the ATP Tour since early March. Matches are scheduled to take place on clay court in the Sicily capital from August 3.

Tournament director Oliviero Palma said the organizing committee had written an urgent letter to Speranza. He asked for an exemption for tennis players who took part in the event.

"The provision will punish players like (Romanian) Simona Halep, world number two and defending champion Wimbledon, from not taking part in the Palermo tournament at all," Palma said in a statement quoted by Antara.

Italy is the first country in Europe to have been hard-hit by COVID-19 but the number of new daily infections reported is only a fraction of what was seen at the end of March. The country of Spaghetti has recorded more than 35,000 deaths from the virus.

Palermo will implement strict health precautions and all players will be tested for COVID-19 before they arrive, on arrival and every next four days.

"We believe that the health protocol adopted by the WTA is very strict to ensure the safety and health of not only athletes, but also all the various workers involved in the event," said Palma.

"I emphasize that all the conditions and guarantees needed to provide a reduction for all players arriving from Romania or Bulgaria are in place, to prevent them from quarantine and therefore withdraw from the tournament."