“Unable to Ask It to Be Fully Ready”: Johanna Konta Joins Serena Williams, Roger Federer, and Others in Tokyo Olympics Withdrawal List

The long list of tennis player withdrawals from Tokyo Olympics continue as British tennis star Johanna Konta announced her to not participate in the prestigious event.

The grass-court season began well for the Brit as she won the WTA Nottingham Open ahead of Wimbledon. Just when fans thought Konta was in the right form ahead the grand slam, she was forced to withdraw from the tournament as a team member tested positive for COVID-19.

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According to the stringent guidelines issued by the All England Lawn Tennis Club ahead of Wimbledon, any player who came in close contact with a COVID positive person will be taken out from the main draw.

Johanna Konta pulls out of Tokyo Olympics after testing positive for COVID-19

Now, Konta revealed in her Olympics withdrawal statement that she tested positive for the virus and was in self-isolation for two weeks.

“As some of you may know, I was unable to compete at Wimbledon this year after a member of my team tested positive for COVID-19. Unfortunately, whilst self-isolating, I also developed symptoms and subsequently tested positive for the virus”,?wrote Konta in the statement.

Konta continued, “As a result, I have been unable to train for the last two and a half weeks and sadly, this has put my body in a situation where I am unable to ask it to be fully ready in time for the Olympic games in Tokyo”.?

Despite a below-par performance on the WTA tour this year, the British player displayed glimpses of her best at the Nottingham Open.

Coming to Konta’s record at the Olympics, she managed to reach the quarter-finals at?Rio 2016 after defeating the likes of Svetlana Kuznetsova and Caroline Garcia. In the quarters, she was ousted by Angelique Kerber.

With her withdrawal, Konta joins the long list of tennis players like Rafael Nadal, Dominic Thiem, Serena Williams, etc. who already announced their decision to skip the Tokyo event.

Also read: ALAS! Home-Favorite Johanna Konta Encounters Disappointment on the Eve of Wimbledon Championships 2021