In short:
Daniil Medvedev is among a host of tennis players, coaches and journalists stranded in Dubai after Middle East tensions shut down airspace.
Zimbabwe’s cricket team has been unable to leave India after it was eliminated from the T20 World Cup on Sunday night.
The England Lions have also cancelled a cricket match in Abu Dhabi, but remain unable to leave the region.
Former World No.1 Daniil Medvedev, his family and his team are stranded in Dubai a day after he won the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships for his 23rd career ATP title.
Tallon Griekspoor, who withdrew from the title match due to injury, and Andrey Rublev were also in Dubai after the airspace was shut down due to tensions in the Middle East following the United States’ air strikes on Iran on Saturday, local time.
Medvedev, the 2021 US Open champion, told Bolshe Tennis that he has no idea when he will be able to fly out of the United Arab Emirates. He and the other players are slated to play at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, California. The main draw play in that tourney starts on Wednesday.
“The situation is unusual, but basically, the only thing is that the airspace is closed, naturally,” Medvedev told Bolshe Tennis in Russian, according to tennisuptodate.com. “So, no-one knows when we’ll be able to fly out. It’s not clear whether this will last long or not.
“We’re just waiting to see what happens in the coming hours or days. They keep gradually pushing back the airport reopening time.”
Medvedev said he is coping well under the circumstances and has been able to remain calm.
“As strange as that sounds, on the court, I’m very emotional, but in real life, it might actually help me to be more emotional at times — so, for me, everything is normal,” Medvedev said. “Naturally, I’ve received a lot of messages from friends and family, and everyone is worried, but I can say for my part that everything is fine.”
Medvedev is slated to participate in the Eisenhower Cup mixed doubles exhibition at Indian Wells on Tuesday. His doubles partner is young Russian WTA star Mirra Andreeva.