A tennis star who moaned about being stuck in Australian Open quarantine before testing postive has claimed her time in lockdown was a ‘nightmare’ and said she was treated like ‘a criminal’.
Paula Badosa has been one of the most outspoken critics among 72 players who were locked up in hotels for 14 days without being able to leave their rooms after arriving into Melbourne on the same planes as infected patients.
‘It was a nightmare. They treated me as if I were a criminal, they transferred me from one hotel to another escorted by police officers,’ Badosa told Spanish paper El Pais.
Spanish tennis player Paula Badosa (pictured) said her experience locked up in hotel quarntine in Melbourne was a ‘nightmare’ and she felt she had been treated like ‘a criminal’
Badosa, the world number 67, said being confined to a hotel room without the ability to leave to train had put her at a disadvantage in the Australian Open
The Spaniard flew into Melbourne after playing in Abu Dhabi and tested positive for coronavirus on day seven of her quarantine along with her coach Javier Martí.
The world number 67 complained she ‘didn’t have a window to breathe a little’ in her hotel and told how she suffered from anxiety during her stint in quarantine.
‘In general, I have endured quite well but I have gone through many emotions and I have lived many moments of anxiety, because I am also very anxious and very active,’ she said.
Badosa said in normal situations ‘when you’re like this you go for a walk but in my case I couldn’t, it was horrible’.
The Spanish player said she did not have access to proper training equipment and said the strict quarantine had put her at a disadvantage against other competitors who were allowed out of their rooms for up to five hours a day to train.
‘How am I going to compete against those who have been training daily, two or three hours for two weeks?’ She questioned.
Badosa previously described her time in quarantine as the ‘worst experience’ of her career, saying she felt ‘abandoned’ and had suffered from anxiety and claustrophobia
Badosa said she will be forced to compete with only a couple of workouts under her belt and noted the toll that had taken on her body by slowing her down.
She said she felt tournament organisers ‘should have raised better conditions to attend to the cases’ knowing some players and support staff would test positive.
Badosa bemoaned she ‘missed a little more empathy’ and while she knew she had coronavirus ‘I am locked up and following the rules’.
When she was released from quarantine on Thursday, Badosa said there was a feeling of ‘euphoria’ but described it as a strange sensation ‘because I was half dizzy’.
Badosa last month described her time in quarantine as the ‘worst experience’ of her career, saying she felt ‘abandoned’ and had suffered from anxiety and claustrophobia.
‘I feel abandoned because I don’t have training equipment which I requested five days ago, I haven’t been told which type of the virus I have, I’ve had no information from the tournament,’ she told Spanish media outlet Marca last month.
‘The conditions here are lamentable, I wasn’t expecting that. The number one thing people recommend when you have the virus is to open the windows to let in air, but I don’t have windows in my hotel room and it’s barely 15m square.’
Badosa said she had not received any training equipment and was limited to doing sit-ups and using water bottles for weights in room she is sharing with her coach Javier Marti.
Australian Open organisers said they were in regular touch with Badosa but due to her positive test the restrictions were tighter on what was allowed in her hotel room.
Badosa said she had not received any training equipment and had been limited to doing sit-ups and using water bottles for weights in room she is sharing with her coach Javier Marti
Badosa tested positive for coronavirus on day seven of her quarantine after flying into Melbourne from Abu Dhabi
‘We have exercise equipment ready and waiting for her, and will continue to work with the health authorities on finding a solution for this to be delivered to her room,’ Tennis Australia said.
Following her initial complaints, Badosa posted her apology to Twitter.
‘Health will always comes first and I feel grateful for being in Australia. Quarantine and preventive measures are pivotal right now,’ her tweet read.
‘I talked about rules that changed overnight but I understand the sad situation we are living. Sorry guys. Stay safe.’
She then later announced on Twitter she had tested positive to Covid-19.
‘I have some bad news,’ Badosa wrote. ‘Today I received a positive Covid-19 test result.
‘I’m feeling unwell and have some symptoms but I’ll try to recover as soon as possible listening to the doctors.’
The Australian Open starts on Monday.