By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Monday July 12, 2021
Bianca Andreescu is the latest top flight tennis player to opt out of the Tokyo Olympics. The No.5-ranked Canadian joins fellow stars Serena Williams, Sofia Kenin, Simona Halep, Rafael Nadal and Dominic Thiem on the sidelines.
“I would like to inform you that I have made the very difficult decision to not play in the Tokyo Olympics later this month,” Andreescu said. “I have been dreaming of representing Canada at the Olympics since I was a little girl, but with all the challenges we are facing as it relates to the pandemic, I know that deep in my heart, this is the right decision to make for myself.”
Already eight Top-25 players on the mens side have announced they won’t be playing Tokyo, for various reasons. Four Top-20 players will be missing from the women’s draw.
Concern has grown that Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer may not attend. Djokovic told reporters he was "50-50" about playing the Olympics after winning Wimbledon on Sunday. Last week the Olympics announced that no spectators would be allowed at the tennis venue, further complicating the decision for the players.
'I'll have to think about it," he said. "Right now, as I said, my plan was always to go to Olympic Games. But right now I'm a little bit divided. It's kind of 50/50 because of what I heard in the last couple days.
Federer told reporters he will need to reassess things in a few days after he fell to Hubert Hurkacz in the quarterfinals at Wimbledon.
The Olympic tennis event begins on July 24th in Tokyo.