American tennis player Serena Williams is the first star to confirm her participation in the US Open, the Grand Slam tournament held behind closed doors in New York, despite the concern displayed by several stars of the professional circuit, due to the coronavirus crisis, informs AFP .

“I look forward to playing at the US Open 2020. I think the American Federation will do a good job of making sure everyone is safe. It’s crazy. I’m excited,” the champion said in a video message. from the United States, who will try to win his seventh trophy at Flushing Meadows between August 31 and September 13.

On Tuesday, the governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, gave the green light to the American Tennis Federation (USTA) for organizing the tournament, long threatened by the pandemic.

The presence of Serena Williams is a strong support for USTA, which has seen its project challenged by several players, including stars Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal.

What Novak Djokovic was saying

Djokovic, the current world number one, described the health and safety directives originally proposed as “extreme”, while Nadal said no competition should be resumed “as long as the situation is not entirely certain”.

According to the new protocol, the players will be tested for Covid-19 before leaving for New York, where the Masters 1,000 ATP tournament moved from Cincinnati (August 22-30) will take place, and will then be subjected to other tests upon arrival. and throughout his stay in the American metropolis, once or twice a week.

“We will not be able to completely prevent a person from contracting the disease, but we will be able to prevent a major epidemic,” said Dr. Brian Hainline, chair of the USTA medical advisory group.