By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Thursday March 12, 2020
The ATP Tour has announced a six-week suspension, effective immediately, due to the Coronavirus pandemic.
The affected ATP Tour events are the Miami Open, the U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championships in Houston, the Grand Prix Hassan II in Marrakech, the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, and the Hungarian Open in Budapest.
If things go as planned, the tour would resume with events on April 27, in Estoril and Munich.
In a statement, ATP Chairman Andrea Gaudenzi said:
“This is not a decision that was taken lightly and it represents a great loss for our tournaments, players, and fans worldwide. However we believe this is the responsible action needed at this time in order to protect the health and safety of our players, staff, the wider tennis community and general public health in the face of this global pandemic. The worldwide nature of our sport and the international travel required presents significant risks and challenges in today’s circumstances, as do the increasingly restrictive directives issued by local authorities. We continue to monitor this on a daily basis and we look forward to the Tour resuming when the situation improves. In the meantime, our thoughts and well-wishes are with all those that have been affected by the virus.”
ATP Challenger events will also be cancelled, including next week’s Arizona Tennis Classic.
The Coronavirus has forced sporting cancellations worldwide. On Tuesday the NBA suspended its season indefinitely and the NCAA announced that it would be holding its March Madness without fans.
The WTA is expected to make a similar announcement but has not done so yet.
More to follow…