Tragedy struck at the ATP Finals on Monday as two people died in separate incidents just hours apart from each other. A 70-year-old man and a 78-year-old man were each individually taken ill and rushed to hospital but could not be saved, according to Gazzetta dello Sport. The first man fell seriously ill in the morning in front of the Fan Village in Piazza d’Armi, near the Inalpi Arena.
The other man suffered a medical emergency in the stands during the match between Lorenzo Musetti and Taylor Fritz. Both men were treated by emergency responders and rushed to Molinette Hospital in Turin in critical condition. Resuscitation was attempted without success and the two men were ultimately pronounced dead.
A separate report from Spanish outlet AS states that some fans were left ‘deeply shaken’ by the incidents, which have cast a sombre mood over the tournament. The two men have not been publicly named and it is not known what caused their deaths.
Fritz defeated Musetti in straight sets in Monday’s opening match with the American in control throughout the contest. He was initially due to face Novak Djokovic but the veteran Serb withdrew from the tournament after winning the Hellenic Championship.
Musetti, the losing finalist in Athens, was drafted in to replace Djokovic. He will play Alex de Minaur and Carlos Alcaraz in his remaining group stage matches and faces an uphill battle to qualify for the knockout stages.
“But at the same time, it is also an advantage, you have to say that, you have to use it in the right way, even if you don’t want to win like this. But if there is a chance, you have to use it.
“It also changes when you are a set up and you see struggles, it’s a bit different. He’s a huge server, especially indoors, you have to be careful. But as I said, it’s not nice, especially Felix had some very tough injuries, so we only wish him only the best.”
Two more singles matches will take place on Tuesday, with Alcaraz facing Fritz and Musetti going up against De Minaur.