ANKARA – The 2020 French Open has been rescheduled to run for three weeks in the fall, Roland-Garros said Wednesday.
The tournament was supposed to begin in May but was suspended due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) outbreak.
''Following discussions with the international tennis authorities – the ATP, WTA and ITF – the French Tennis Federation is delighted to announce that this year’s Roland-Garros tournament will be played over three weeks, from 21st September to 11th October 2020, providing the conditions relating to the COVID-19 health crisis allow it to go ahead,'' the organization said on its website.
''The Parisian Grand Slam has been granted an extra week of competition, which means the qualifying tournament can be played from 21st September,” it added.
US Open
The US Open will be held behind closed doors with safety protocols in August, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced on Twitter.
"The USTA will take extraordinary precautions to protect players and staff, including robust testing, additional cleaning, extra locker room space, and dedicated housing & transportation," Cuomo said.
The governor added that the tournament will be played without fans from Aug. 31 to Sept. 13.
ATP, WTA tours
Meanwhile, the ATP and WTA tours have both issued revised calendars.
The ATP Tour will resume on August 14 with the Citi Open, ATP 500 event in Washington, DC, while the first WTA event will be staged in Palermo, Italy starting August 3.
"Having assessed the global outlook for travel in the latter half of the year, working with our medical experts on providing the safest environment possible, and working through the diverse operational challenges for running events safely in the context of Covid-19, the WTA is pleased to release a calendar for the remainder of the 2020 season," WTA chairman and CEO Steve Simon said.
"Our objective has been to reschedule as many tournaments as possible and salvage as much of the season as we can," said Andrea Gaudenzi, ATP chairman. "It has been a truly (a) collaborative effort and we hope to add more events to the calendar as the situation evolves. I would like to recognize our tournaments' efforts to operate during these challenging times, as well as our players who will be competing under different conditions. At every turn, ensuring that the resumption of the Tour takes place in a safe environment will be paramount." (Anadolu with reports from Xinhua)
