Matteo Berrettini, 2021 runner-up, withdraws from Wimbledon after positive COVID-19 test

WIMBLEDON, England — Matteo Berrettini, last year's runner-up at Wimbledon, dropped out of the grass-court Grand Slam tournament hours before he was scheduled to play his first-round match Tuesday, saying that he tested positive for COVID-19.

The All England Club announced Berrettini's withdrawal, and he posted about it on Instagram, saying that he was «heartbroken'' and has been isolating „the last few days'' after experiencing flu-like symptoms.

He's the second high-profile player to pull out of the draw within the first two days because of the illness caused by the coronavirus, joining 2014 U.S. Open champion and 2017 Wimbledon finalist Marin Cilic.

After being canceled in 2020 because of the pandemic, then setting up a bubble-type environment and restricting attendance in 2021 to try to prevent the spread of COVID-19, Wimbledon has returned to normal in every way, with no mask-wearing requirement, full crowds and the famous Queue back in action.

“Despite symptoms not being severe, I decided it was important to take another test this morning to protect the health and safety of my fellow competitors and everyone else involved in the tournament,'' Berrettini wrote in his post, which included a black-and-white photo of him hitting a serve at Wimbledon.

A post shared by Matteo Berrettini (@matberrettini)

»I have no words to describe the extreme disappointment I feel,'' he said. «The dream is over for this year, but I will be back stronger.''

The eighth-seeded Italian spent time practicing with Rafael Nadal on Centre Court last week and also crossed paths with Novak Djokovic there.

Berrettini was supposed to play 44th-ranked Cristian Garin in the first round on Tuesday. Berrettini was replaced in the field by Elias Ymer,