A player has tested positive for coronavirus at the WTA Palermo Open, which marks the tennis season's resumption after a five-month break, AFP reported while quoting the WTA and organisers.

The competitor, who had no symptoms, withdrew just minutes before the start of qualifying this weekend for the tournament which gets underway in Sicily on August 3.

Her name was not revealed but shortly after the announcement 130th-ranked Bulgarian Viktoriya Tomova, who had been due to take part in qualifying, withdrew because of illness.

The WTA confirmed that the tournament would go ahead as planned.

Opinion

Editorial

Climate choices
Updated 15 Jun, 2026

Climate choices

The country is confronting increasingly volatile weather patterns with consequences for agriculture, infrastructure, public health and economic planning.
Brief opening
15 Jun, 2026

Brief opening

WE have been here before. Throughout the weekend, there was great anticipation that a tentative framework for peace...
Environmental disaster
15 Jun, 2026

Environmental disaster

IT was a heartbreaking sight. A recent news report in these pages carried a picture of a sea turtle lying half ...
Budget presser
Updated 14 Jun, 2026

Budget presser

If the FBR falters, the government will find itself in hot water sooner rather than later.
Muharram precautions
14 Jun, 2026

Muharram precautions

WITH Muharram due to start next week, the authorities have already begun annual exercises to ensure that the ...
Blood bequests
14 Jun, 2026

Blood bequests

WORLD Blood Donor Day offers a moment of “gratitude, advocacy and renewed commitment” for thalassaemia patients...