The United States Tennis Association has cancelled all amateur tournaments scheduled for next month, but has announced that the US Open, which will begin from August 31, will go on as planned.
The association said that an inherent risk was involved with hosting such events and large gatherings at one site at a given time, making “risk mitigation difficult”. It added that the kind of COVID-19 testing and other protocols in place for the US Open would difficult to create, logistically and financially, for these tournaments.
The USTA National Championships in certain junior age groups for singles and doubles will be cancelled. Reports said this includes boys’ 18s in Orlando and girls’ 18s in San Diego in singles; boys’ 16s in Rome, Georgia, and girls’ 16s in Mobile, Alabama, in singles; and boys’ and girls’ 12s through 18s doubles in Orlando. Men’s and women’s USTA National Grass Court Championships in Newport, Rhode Island, are also among the tournaments eliminated due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Several high-ranking players, including Rafael Nadal, Simona Halep and world number one Ashleigh Barty, have expressed concern over holding the grand slam event in the US amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Men’s number one player Novak Djokovic, who is facing the consequences of organising the Adria Tour, said that he is likely to boycott the US Open for the many restrictions that are in place for the event at Flushing Meadows.
Global sports, including tennis, has been suspended since March due to the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.