Tennis clay season to take major hit due to coronavirus, French Open in jeopardy

The WTA’s suspension announcement came on the heels of the ATP’s decision to suspend its tour for six weeks. The French Open officials insist that the next grand slam will go on, but many are saying tennis won’t be back on until grass this summer. Who’s right?

On the heels of the Association of Tennis Professionals’ (ATP) decision to halt the tour for six weeks, the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) has suspended its events through May 2. The ATP events are on hiatus through April 20.

Many of the cancellations affect the pre-season warmups integral to the next grand slam, the French Open.

"“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,” said ATP Chairman Andrea Gaudenzi, according to the ATP web site.“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.”"

Considering that much of the clay events take place in Europe — and with President Trump’s ban on European travel — it’s no surprise that tennis has followed other sports by closing down for the next month or so. Coronavirus repercussions have yet to affect a grand slam, but with the French Open taking place at the end of May, the tournament is certainly sitting in a precarious situation.

Masters 1000 events at Rome and Madrid are still scheduled to proceed, but may be played behind closed doors to protect the players. Roland Garros is considering several scenarios, including playing to empty stadiums, away from spectators.

“That also poses problems,” said French Open tournament director Guy Forget, according to L’Equipe (via tennis.com). “If it is going to be viable there has to be time, but at the same time it’s going to arrive rapidly … The unknown is the amount of time it is going to be going on.”

So far, there are no plans to cancel Roland Garros. Closing down a grand slam would deal a devastating blow to a sport already dealing with serious turmoil over cancellations of Indian Wells in California and the Miami Open in Florida — two joint ATP-WTA Masters 1000 tournaments and two of the biggest on the sport’s calendar. The cancellations were due to state health emergencies and were closed down at the direction of public health officials and the states’ governors.

“We will explore all the possibilities but anyway, it is not going to be up to the French federation. We will follow the recommendations [of the government],” Forget continued.

The gutted tennis season is already wreaking havoc for the players’ earnings, mentioned by French player James Chardy in a separate L’Equipe interview.

“If we cancel our fifth biggest tournament like this, it’s because we expect we are going to have difficult moments.”

Chardy just had a baby with his wife Susan Gossage and is concerned about how much he will earn going forward. Tennis players are generally paid only when they play events.

"“I no longer know, actually, if I am unemployed, on paternity leave, or a tennis player,” said the former world No. 25. “Many players want to talk about it. It’s not our fault what’s going on. If many tournaments are canceled, it can be difficult if you’re not an employee. And for ATP points, it can also be complicated.”"

Another player, American Tennys Sandgren, doesn’t think we’ll see tennis bounce back until the summer grass season.

“Does gathering for sports events really matter compared to flooding the health care system? Obviously not,” Sandgren was quoted in The New York Times, via Essentially Sports.

“People just have to understand that and be OK with taking one for the team in all walks of life.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if we were not back out there until the grass [season].”

One person who isn’t suffering through all this mess is Roger Federer, who decided to sit out six months after having knee surgery last month.

https://twitter.com/Eurosport_UK/status/1237416906166018051

He couldn’t have timed his absence better, although anything involving the coronavirus is no joking matter.

Check back here for any updates about the tennis schedule going forward. Let’s hope the pandemic gets under control in the coming weeks and the sport doesn’t follow the sad PGA news with the postponement of their next major, The Masters.

For more information about COVID-19, visit the CDC’s website or the website for your state’s Department of Health.