Cologne (SID) – The tennis world number two Aryna Sabalenka has been infected with the corona virus and missed the WTA tournament in Indian Wells. The Belarusian announced this on Instagram. Sabalenka (23) is the next prominent failure at the high-paying event in the California desert, which had been postponed from spring to autumn due to the pandemic. Serena Williams (USA), Ashleigh Barty (Australia) and Naomi Osaka (Japan) are also missing.
For men, the 20-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic (Serbia) canceled his participation. The tournament in the Indian Wells Tennis Garden begins on October 6th, and for Olympic champion Alexander Zverev (Hamburg) and the former world number one Angelique Kerber (Kiel) it is one of the last highlights of the 2021 season. A total of more than 15 million euros in prize money will be paid out .
