Daniil Medvedev, Andrey Rublev among ATP players stranded in Dubai after airspace closures

A number of ATP players, including Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev—as well as their coaches, tour staff and tournament personnel—remain stranded in the United Arab Emirates following the conclusion of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, in the latest instance of geopolitical conflict colliding with the global tennis tour.

According to MARCA, 41 people involved with the tournament are still unable to leave amid airspace closures across the Middle East following the outbreak of war in the region between the U.S., Israel and Iran—now in its third day, with over 500 casualties reported by the Red Crescent.

Reem Abulleil, journalist for The National, provided further details. Among those stuck in Dubai are champion Medvedev and runner-up Tallon Griekspoor (who didn’t play their final due to the Dutch player’s injury, though both took part in the trophy ceremony on Saturday), as well as all the doubles finalists: champions Harri Heliovaara and Henry Patten; runners-up Marcelo Arevalo and Mate Pavic; and semifinalist Rublev.

Read More: Daniil Medvedev wins Dubai title after injured Tallon Griekspoor pulls out of final

“No one knows when we will be able to take off,” Medvedev told Bolshe! on Sunday. “That is, it’s not clear whether (airspace closures) will last long or not. Therefore we are just waiting to see, let’s say, what will happen in the next hours and days.”

Officials, tennis journalists and the tournament stenographer are also stuck in Dubai.

The ATP issued a statement on Monday addressing the situation for the first time.

“The health, safety and wellbeing of our players, staff and tournament personnel is our priority. We can confirm that a small number of players and team members remain in Dubai following the conclusion of the recent ATP 500 event. They and their teams are being accommodated in the tournament’s official hotels, where their immediate needs are being fully supported.

The tour remains ‘in direct communication' with those affected, as well as with tournament organizers, security advisors and local officials.

“At this stage, travel arrangements remain subject to ongoing assessment in line with airline operations and official guidance. We will continue to provide appropriate support to ensure players and their teams can safely depart when conditions allow.

“We will continue to assess developments and provide updates as appropriate.”

No one knows when we will be able to take off... we are just waiting to see what will happen in the next hours and days. Daniil Medvedev to Bolshe!

Other stranded players in the region include Holger Rune and his mother, Aneke Rune. The pair are stuck in Doha, where they have been based while the Dane recovers from an Achilles tendon injury at Aspetar Sports Medicine Hospital. He was spotted in the stands watching the ATP 500 tournament last week.

“It’s been a wild night. We didn’t get much sleep,” Aneke told TV2 Sport. “It all seems more brutal at night with the fireballs in the sky and repeated bangs…”

In an interview with BT, Aneke also slammed the Danish government for a lack of communication with its citizens: “We want to leave. But we have not yet received any news from Denmark. It’s a disappointing situation.”

In addition to the immediate safety concerns, the travel gridlock has left players at risk of missing the BNP Paribas Open—the first ATP Masters 1000 event of the year, which starts on March 4. Medvedev and Rublev were already withdrawn from Tuesday night’s Eisenhower Cup, with Learner Tien now set to team up with Amanda Anisimova (replacing Rublev) and Alexander Bublik with Mirra Andreeva (replacing Medvedev) in the popular mixed doubles exhibition event.

There have been several exit strategies discussed, according to MARCA, including a six-hour drive to Muscat, Oman (which has also been subject to airport closures and is currently closed) or a 10-hour drive to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where a private jet would take them to Istanbul, Turkey. However, players ultimately chose to stay put following an emergency meeting.

Heliovaara explained their reasoning in his blog after they received a security briefing from the tournament supervisor, tour manager and the ATP’s head of security.

“The instructions from the ATP side have been very clear so far, the safest thing to do is to stay at the hotel and wait,” he wrote in Finnish.

“According to the information we received, there are bad traffic jams at the border (to Oman), and in addition to that, arranging suitable transport is difficult, because a car with UAE plates is not allowed to drive into Oman without a permit, and you cannot cross the border on foot…

“The journey to Riyadh in Saudi Arabia is over 10 hours and the road after the border is quite bad. So it’s not an ideal route without proper preparations.”

As of Monday, Dubai International Airport—the world’s busiest international airport—had resumed limited operations, with a small number of flights departing. There has been no confirmation on whether players were able to leave, but it offers hope that their travel situation will improve.

The airport is located adjacent to the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships venue and near one of the official player hotels, the Creekside Hotel in Jumeirah—less than a five-minute drive away under normal conditions. The airport suffered damage overnight on Sunday as a result of Iranian retaliatory strikes, but is now back up and running.

Elsewhere in the UAE, business continued as usual, with an ATP Challenger event in Fujairah proceeding as scheduled. Lloyd Harris and Jason Kubler are the top seeds, and Cruz Hewitt (son of Aussie champion Lleyton Hewitt) is among the wild cards. Fujairah is located 120 km from Dubai, about a 90-minute drive by car.