Lercari (TC Genova) and Ceppellini (Park) “bocciano” Djokovic – Primocanale.it
The Genoese tennis world deprecates the Australian adventure of Nole Djokovic, the world’s number one tennis player who slipped into a labyrinth of lies and subterfuges to evade the obligations linked to the pandemic, until his expulsion from Australia.
Rodolfo Lercari, president of the Tennis Club Genova 1893, is disconcerted: “It is not so much the epilogue of the story that leaves us astonished as the beginning: if there is a tournament in the world as important as the Australian Open that provides certain rules, at a time when the planet is subject to the rules of It seems impossible to me that someone who wants to participate, in addition designated as seed number 1, did not know the registration rules. There will have been a short circuit between the tournament organizers, the government and the athlete, but it was necessary to find an agreement before the story would turn into a ridiculous soap opera both for the other players and for the whole world, with implications not only for tennis “.
“The tennis system – underlines Lercari – comes out well because it is equipped in time. If I organize a tournament at TC Genova, those who do not have a green pass do not participate. I would say that this scene has lasted too long and no one deserved to endure it” .
Lercari’s words echo those of Federico Ceppellini president of the Tennis Park: “It was pretty obvious that it would end like this, because there are rules to respect, even for champions like Djokovic. The situation was handled badly by everyone, by the government and of course by the tennis player himself, due to a decline in the reputation of all parties involved. with wide-ranging repercussions. I would say that we could have done better, acting in time, in the awareness of how Australia is very rigorous in terms of health “.
“In this moment of pandemic – continues Ceppellini – there are rules that must be respected by everyone, including Djokovic. It is a detail that the exclusion of the Serb favors the entry of Caruso and virtually facilitates the path of Fognini, Berrettini and Sonego who they are all on that side of the scoreboard, but the whole tennis world is sorry that Djokovic does not play. “
“Djokovic – he concludes – wants to end his career as the most successful of all time, but in terms of image management, other champions such as Nadal and Federer are at a sidereal distance”.