Former champion Michael Stich urged tennis stars to "consider themselves lucky" when Wimbledon returns after last year's cancellation.
Prospects of the tournament going ahead in front of London crowds appear suddenly bright, with lockdown restrictions due to be lifted over the coming months.
There may still be restrictions on travel into the United Kingdom from abroad, however, by the time Wimbledon comes around. The fortnight-long tournament is due to begin on June 28, one week after all COVID-19 restrictions on daily life are scheduled to end in England.
Wimbledon has said it is planning for "scenarios of full, reduced and no public capacity", and it may be the ferrying of thousands of players and their support teams to the tournament that proves the greatest logistical headache.
The grass-court major was scrapped last year amid the pandemic, not taking place for the first time since the second World War.
The Australian Open quarantined for 14 days all the tennis players, entourages and officials who arrived in the country ahead of the recent grand slam in Melbourne, which led to some grumbling among tour stars.
Men's champion Novak Djokovic later said many players were reluctant to continue with the season if being confined to a hotel room was going to become the norm.
Stich, who beat fellow German Boris Becker in the 1991 Wimbledon final, says tennis pros should be grateful they have the opportunity to make a living, even if it means making a sacrifice. Given the proximity of the French Open to Wimbledon on the calendar, elite players may face plenty of time cut off from friends and family.
"I still believe that all the players should consider themselves lucky to actually be able to go to work. We do have a lot of sports competitions that do not have this luxury," Stich told Stats Perform News.
"Therefore, five weeks of quarantine might be a high burden for sure, I couldn't imagine that. But still, to actually participate in a tournament and to earn money through playing in that tournament, which is vital for many people these days, is definitely a present.
"We will have to wait and see what will happen to the pandemic and which scenarios we can create to play there. In Europe, the distances are small, so players should think about their travel arrangements.
"If players are, for example, in quarantine [at grass-court tournaments] in Stuttgart or Halle, they can enter the country through a transport method that can exclude themselves from the masses - then it is basically as if they entered a consistent quarantine.
"Maybe then it can become possible. I truly wish that Wimbledon will go ahead for the players and primarily for the fans."
Alcaraz begins Madrid Open campaign with emphatic win
Carlos Alcaraz continued his fine record at the Madrid Open with an emphatic 6-2 6-1 victory over Alexander Shevchenko on Friday.
The two-time defending champion made it 12 straight wins at his home tournament to ensure he will face Brazilian Thiago Seyboth Wild in the last 32.
Alcaraz was playing his first match on the ATP Tour since March 28 after being unable to compete in the Monte-Carlo Masters and Barcelona Open due to an arm injury.
But he was still able to make a fine start to his clay-court season, breaking serve in the first game and racing to victory in only one hour and eight minutes.
Data Debrief
Sometimes the scoreline can be harsh on a beaten player, but on this occasion Alcaraz was clearly dominant, breaking the Kazakh seven times in the match and forcing 11 break-point opportunities while conceding only three for his opponent.
That allowed the Spaniard to claim a dominant victory despite being broken once in each set. He will now turn his attention to a clash with Seyboth Wild, who battled past Lorenzo Musetti with a 6-4 6-4 win.
Reigning champion Sabalenka pushed by Linette at Madrid Open
Aryna Sabalenka got her Madrid Open campaign started with a 6-4 3-6 6-3 win over Magda Linette on Friday.
Sabalenka could not quite hit her peak form against Linette, but the world number two nevertheless got the job done after going the distance.
The Belarusian is hunting a record-equalling third title in Madrid, where she is the reigning champion, though she has not won back-to-back matches at a tournament since winning the Australian Open.
"It's not about being confident," Sabalenka said. "It's about how much you're ready to do to get it. It's about the hard work and to be ready, be ready for the big fights. I feel like confidence is not going to help you in those big matches. It's about staying there and fighting for it."
Data Debrief
Sabalenka (70 per cent, 56-24) is now one of five active players since 2020 to hold a winning percentage of 70 per cent or higher at WTA-1000 events.
Iga Swiatek, Simona Halep, Elena Rybakina and Jessica Pegula are the other players to feature on that list.
Rybakina continues clay winning streak with victory over Bronzetti
In-form Elena Rybakina has moved into the last 32 of the Madrid Open after a straight sets victory over Italian Lucia Bronzetti.
Number four seed Rybakina triumphed 6-4 6-3 on Friday and will next face either Marta Kostyuk or Mayar Sherif.
Rybakina was broken early in each set but ultimately had few problems getting over the line, converting four of her five break points to continue an impressive run of results after winning the Stuttgart Open last week.
She has now won five consecutive WTA matches and has 13 straight wins on clay courts to her name in a superb streak that started one year ago.
Data Debrief: Rybakina in elite company
Since the start of 2020, only two other players have claimed as many 13 consecutive WTA wins on clay, and they are Iga Swiatek and Simona Halep, so Rybakina is in elite company.
Rybakina's last defeat on this surface came in the 2023 edition of the Madrid Open, when she fell to Anna Kalinskaya in her first match, so this win represented a better start to her campaign in the Spanish capital.
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