MELBOURNE, Australia — American tennis participant Taylor Fritz stated Thursday he’s donating the prize cash he earned for his first-round victory on the Australian Open — about $82,000 — to aid funds to assist folks affected by the wildfires within the higher Los Angeles space.
“I imply, I really feel prefer it’s actually the least I can do,” stated U.S. Open finalist Fritz, who was born in Rancho Santa Fe, California, and nonetheless relies within the state.
“Clearly ‘SoCal’ has been my residence ceaselessly. I nonetheless spend lots of time in LA, however I lived in LA for fairly some time. I’ve pals impacted; household not a lot. I had some household should evacuate. The home that my brothers grew up in burnt down. Clearly, they don’t seem to be dwelling there anymore,” Fritz stated after reaching the third spherical at Melbourne Park with a 6-2, 6-1, 6-0 victory over qualifier Cristian Garin of Chile.
“Lots of people are affected by it,” added Fritz, the runner-up to Jannik Sinner on the U.S. Open in September and seeded No. 4 in Australia. “I really feel like for those who’re in a spot to assist, then you need to.”
Authorities haven’t decided a trigger for the main blazes in what’s on monitor to change into the nation’s costliest hearth catastrophe, with a minimum of 25 folks lifeless and 1000’s of properties destroyed.
A number of athletes with connections to the LA space have been competing on the yr’s first Grand Slam event.
Naomi Osaka, a four-time main champion, stated she despatched somebody to retrieve her 1 1/2-year-old daughter’s delivery certificates from their California residence in case it received caught up within the fires. Tristan Boyer, a 23-year-old from California who had a first-round win however misplaced Thursday, stated his father needed to evacuate their home in Altadena.
“We now have family and friends who’re homeless now. It is actually, actually devastating to see,” Boyer stated. “Clearly making an attempt to do what I have to do to prep and play tennis, however management what I can management on this second. Nevertheless it’s onerous for certain.”
Fritz will play French veteran Gael Monfils on Saturday for a berth within the fourth spherical in Australia. Additionally on Fritz’s thoughts is what is occurring again residence.
“I simply need everybody to clearly keep secure,” Fritz stated. “It is simply insane what occurred.”
