Tennis in General - Results and Comments

WTA FINALS OF THE WEEK :

WTA International Prague : Simona Halep (1) won her 21st WTA tournament in career (8th WTA International and on red clay), defeating
Elise Mertens (3) 6-2, 7-5

WTA International Lexington : Jennifer Brady won her first WTA tournament in career, defeating Jil Belen Teichmann 6-3, 6-4

NEXT WEEKS SCHEDULE :

New York City (United States), 22-28 August : "2020 Western & Southern Open"
Categories : ATP World Tour Masters 1000 & WTA Premier 5
Prize Money : $ 2.108.865 (ATP) & $ 2.091.135 (WTA)
Surface : Hard

WTA SEMIFINALS OF THE WEEK :

WTA International Prague : E. Mertens (3) def. Kr. Pliskova 7-5, 7-6 (4)
S. Halep (1) def. I-C. Begu 7-6 (2), 6-3

WTA International Lexington : J. B. Teichmann def. S. Rogers 6-3, 6-2
J. Brady def. C. Gauff 6-2, 6-4

The ATP has issued further updates to the 2020 Tour calendar, setting a provisional schedule for the remainder of the regular season. The revised calendar marks a continuation of the plan to resume the ATP Tour season, following suspension in March due to COVID-19. Under the updated schedule the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Rome, the "Internazionali BNL d' Italia", will now be scheduled one week earlier, in the week previously assigned to the recently cancelled "Mutua Madrid Open", and will have a Monday final. The Rome event will be followed by the ATP 500 Hamburg "European Open" in the week prior to Roland Garros. The updated schedule includes the final section of the calendar comprising the European indoor swing, including events in Saint Petersburg (St. Petersburg Open), Antwerp (European Open), Moscow (VTB Kremlin Cup), Vienna (Erste Bank Open), Paris (Rolex Paris Masters), Sofia (Sofia Open) ahead of the season-ending Nitto ATP Finals in London. Among the changes, the St. Petersburg Open will be elevated to ATP 500 status for its 2020 edition. Andrea Gaudenzi, ATP Chairman, said : "Tennis is starting to find its way back and, while we must first and foremost look after the health and safety of everyone involved, we are hopeful we will be able to retain these playing opportunities and produce a strong finish to the season. I would like to commend the tournaments for their continued commitment, flexibility and resourcefulness in finding solutions to operate under these challenging circumstances". The ATP continues to explore options for additional events to be added to the schedule, including opportunities to issue a limited number of single-year licenses for the remainder of the 2020 season. The provisional calendar remains subject to change and continued assessments will be made relating to health & safety, international travel policies, and governmental approval of sporting events. All events will be held under strict guidelines related to health & safety, social distancing, reduced or no fans on-site. The revised calendar also provides confirmation that the "Next Gen ATP Finals" in Milan will not take place in 2020 due to the impact of COVID-19.

RANKINGS AT AUGUST 10TH :

ATP TOUR (FIRST 15 PLACES) : 1. Novak Djokovic SRB 10.220 points
2. Rafael Nadal ESP 9.850 points
3. Dominic Thiem AUT 7.045 points
4. Roger Federer SUI 6.630 points
5. Daniil Medvedev RUS 5.890 points
6. Stefanos Tsitsipas GRE 4.745 points
7. Alexander Zverev GER 3.630 points
8. Matteo Berrettini ITA 2.860 points
9. Gael Monfils FRA 2.860 points
10. David Goffin BEL 2.555 points
11. Fabio Fognini ITA 2.400 points
12. Roberto Bautista-Agut ESP 2.360 points
13. Diego Schwartzman ARG 2.265 points
14. Andrey Rublev RUS 2.234 points
15. Karen Khachanov RUS 2.120 points

WTA TOUR (FIRST 15 PLACES) : 1. Ashleigh Barty AUS 8.717 points
2. Simona Halep ROU 6.076 points
3. Karolina Pliskova CZE 5.205 points
4. Sofia Kenin USA 4.590 points
5. Elina Svitolina UKR 4.580 points
6. Bianca Vanessa Andreescu CAN 4.555 points
7. Kiki Bertens NED 4.335 points
8. Belinda Bencic SUI 4.010 points
9. Serena Williams USA 3.915 points
10. Naomi Osaka JPN 3.625 points
11. Aryna Sabalenka BLR 3.615 points
12. Petra Kvitova CZE 3.566 points
13. Madison Keys USA 2.962 points
14. (15.) Petra Martic CRO 2.850 points
15. (14.) Johanna Konta GBR 2.803 points

WTA FINAL OF THE WEEK :

WTA International Palermo : Fiona Ferro won her second WTA tournament in career (both WTA International and on red clay), defeating
Anett Kontaveit (4) 6-2, 7-5

NEXT WEEK SCHEDULE :

Prague (Czech Republic), 10-16 August : "2020 J&T Banka Prague Open"
Category : WTA International
Prize Money : $ 225.500
Surface : Red Clay

Lexington (United States), 10-16 August : "2020 Top Seed Open presented by Bluegrass Orthopaedics"
Category : WTA International
Prize Money : $ 225.500
Surface : Hard

WTA SEMIFINALS OF THE WEEK :

WTA International Palermo : A. Kontaveit (4) def. P. Martic (1) 6-2, 6-4
F. Ferro def. C. Giorgi 2-6, 6-2, 7-5

On Tuesday morning, the Mutua Madrid Open announced in a statement that the tournament is officially canceled. “As an act of responsibility in view of the current situation caused by Covid-19, and having thoroughly evaluated the circumstances that the pandemic continues to generate, together with the competent authorities, it has been decided that 2020 Mutua Madrid Open will not take place this year having previously been moved to 12-20 September”, the statement begins. Tournament director Feliciano Lopez helped stage a virtual, video-game Mutua Madrid Open earlier this year, and held out hope that the real thing could be held as a lead-in to Roland Garros, which along with the Internazionali BNL d'Italia is still on the ATP and WTA schedule. After Monday's widespread belief that the event was all but nixed, the unfortunate reality hit today. “We have given our all to stage the tournament”, said Lopez. “After the first cancelation in May, we got to work on the September date with the hope of being able to enjoy first-class tennis in the Caja Mágica during this year which has been so hard for everyone. However, the continued instability is still too great to hold a tournament like this in complete safety. Once again, we would like to thank the Madrid City Council and all of our sponsors and suppliers for being by our side during every step we have taken”. The ATP and WTA issued a joint statement on the decision, applauding the efforts of tournament organizers and stating that an updated schedule would be forthcoming. Both Andrea Gaudenzi, ATP Chairman, and Steve Simon, WTA Chairman and CEO, looked forward to the clay-court tournament's return in 2021.

NEXT WEEK SCHEDULE :

Palermo (Italy), 3-9 August : "31° Palermo Ladies Open"
Category : WTA International
Prize Money : $ 275.000
Surface : Red Clay

The "Toray Pan Pacific Open" in Tokyo has been cancelled for 2020 due to safety fears amid the COVID-19 pandemic, organisers of the annual women's tournament said on Tuesday. Last week, the men's ATP Tour and the women's WTA were forced to cancel all of their remaining tournaments in China for this year in the wake of the country's ban on international sporting events due to the pandemic. "The executive committee, together with the WTA, has been exploring various measures to hold the tournament, such as holding matches without spectators", the organisers of the Premier level tournament said in a statement. "But we have come to the tough conclusion that the cancellation of the tournament was the best decision in the interest of public health, especially in light of the concern about the second wave of infection spreading in Japan". The Pan Pacific Open is part of WTA's Asian swing and has been held every year since its 1984 start. It was originally scheduled to be held in September but was postponed to November. Following this cancellation, the "Korea Open" in Seoul is the only event left in Asia on WTA's provisional calendar for 2020.

Eleven men's and women's tennis tournaments planned for China in October and November, including the WTA Finals, were cancelled today amid the Coronavirus pandemic. Rather than try to move or reschedule any of those events, the ATP and WTA tours announced they were scrapping all of them after China's General Administration of Sport said that country would not host any international sporting events the rest of this year because of the COVID-19 outbreak. "We are extremely disappointed that our world-class events in China will not take place this year", WTA Chairman Steve Simon said. "We do, however, respect the decision that has been made", Simon said "and are eager to return to China as soon as possible next season". His group called off seven women's tournaments (in addition to the WTA Finals, also the WTA Premier Mandatory in Beijing, the WTA Premier 5 in Wuhan, the WTA Premier in Zhengzhou, the three WTA International in Tianjin, Nanchang and Guangzhou and the WTA Elite Trophy in Zhuhai); the ATP wiped four men's events (the "Rolex Shanghai Masters", its only Masters 1000 tournament in Asia, the ATP 500 in Beijing and the two ATP 250 in Chengdu and Zhuhai). "Our approach throughout this pandemic has been to always follow local guidance when staging events. We respect the Chinese government's decision to do what's best for the country in response to the unprecedented global situation", ATP Chairman Andrea Gaudenzi said. "It's with a heavy heart that we announce ATP tournaments will not be played in China this year". The men's tour said it will continue to try to work on arranging a tour calendar for the latter stages of this year, including the ATP Finals scheduled for November. All sanctioned tennis has been on hold since March because of the pandemic, and both tours are tentatively planning to resume in August. This week, though, the ATP cancelled its tournament that was slated for Washington, with qualifying to begin on August 13. The WTA still intends to return to action in Palermo, Italy, on August 3. The next Grand Slam tournament as of now is the U.S. Open, which is supposed to start in New York on August 31. The French Open has been postponed from May to late September.

The Citi Open in Washington, which was scheduled to relaunch the men’s tennis tour next month, has been canceled for 2020. The tournament was set to begin on August 14 and serve as a lead-in event for the United States Open. But Mark Ein, the Citi Open chairman, said concern about international travel restrictions and recent trends in the coronavirus had led to the cancellation. “When we committed to host the event all the trends were going in our favor, and halfway through the process they all reversed,” Ein said by telephone on Tuesday. “Then we ran out of time. With a little more time we may have been able to overcome the obstacles that were in front of us, but it’s better to make a decision for all the stakeholders before it gets to the last minute.” The decision, made on Monday, will increase doubts about this year’s U.S. Open, which is scheduled to be played without spectators in New York from August 31 to September 13. But Stacey Allaster, the U.S. Open tournament director, reaffirmed Monday that plans remained on track for a doubleheader at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. The Western & Southern Open is to be played there from August 22 to 28 as a prelude to the U.S. Open, with players and officials operating inside a health and safety “bubble”, similar to those being used by the N.B.A. and other leagues. The WTA Tour plans to be the first to resume with a clay-court event in Palermo, Italy, from August 3 to 9. That will be followed by a clay-court event in Prague and a new hardcourt event, the Top Seed Open, in Lexington, from August 10 to 16, that already has commitments from Serena and Venus Williams. But the ATP Tour has no plans to fill the gap left by the Citi Open’s cancellation. “I know how hard Mark Ein and his team have worked to adapt to new and continually changing conditions and would like to recognize their outstanding commitment to staging the event,” said Andrea Gaudenzi, the ATP chairman, in a statement. “Unfortunately for the moment there are still large factors at play, which are outside of our control. For now, the ATP season will resume in New York with the Western & Southern Open, followed by the U.S. Open. But those events, if they do take place, are uncertain to attract full-strength fields with some men’s players likely to remain in Europe and restart their seasons on clay. Novak Djokovic, the world’s top-ranked player, and Rafael Nadal, the reigning U.S. Open men’s singles champion, are among those considering that option.

The inaugural version of the revamped Fed Cup Finals has been moved to next year, the International Tennis Federation (ITF) announced on Friday. Twelve nations were set to contest the showpiece team event in Budapest in April but it was postponed after the COVID-19 pandemic closed down the tennis season. It will now take place from April 13-18 next year on indoor clay at the Laszlo Papp Arena in the Hungarian capital. The women's WTA Tour is scheduled to resume in Palermo, Italy on Aug. 3 but the ITF said the ongoing challenges caused by the pandemic have forced them to delay for a year. "In addition to the Laszlo Papp Arena being unavailable over the latter part of the year, there remain significant logistical and regulatory challenges that mean hosting an indoor mass gathering while guaranteeing the health and safety of all involved will not be feasible," a statement said. The same nations will contest the event next year while the playoffs that should have taken place in April will now be staged in February 2021. ITF President David Haggerty said that while it was "regrettable" he was confident that Budapest would hold a "superb" event in 2021. While 10 of the 12 qualifiers were European nations, with the U.S. and Australia completing the field, the logistics of such a large event would prove challenging, especially with nations at different stages in the pandemic. Around 60 players, plus support staff, would have assembled in Budapest for the Finals. The ITF said hosting the event without fans had not been considered a desirable option. "We believe the best way forward in order both to protect the health and safety of all involved and to best respect the integrity of the competition is to extend this year's Fed Cup into 2021, with the event returning to an annual basis the following year," Haggerty said.

Meanwhile, the Davis Cup Finals in Madrid will now take place the week commencing November 22 next year, with 18 teams due to compete. Gerard Pique, Kosmos Tennis President said : “It’s a huge disappointment for all of us that the Davis Cup Finals will not be held in 2020. We don’t know how the situation will develop in each qualified nation, or if restrictions in Spain will remain sufficiently eased, as such it is impossible to predict the situation in November and guarantee the safety of those travelling to Madrid. "This postponement has no long-term bearing on our collective ambitions for the Davis Cup. The ITF and Kosmos Tennis look forward to delivering an outstanding competition in 2021, when it is safe and feasible to do so". Haggerty added: “This is a tough decision to have to make, but delivering an international team event on this scale while guaranteeing the health and safety of all involved ultimately poses too great a risk. It is a complex undertaking and we have made the decision now to provide certainty for players, National Associations and fans. We look forward to continuing our partnership with Kosmos Tennis in order to deliver a fantastic competition next year".

Novak Djokovic has tested positive for Coronavirus : the men's world number one tennis player confirmed the diagnosis in a statement. In April, Djokovic had revealed he was an anti-vaxxer and that it could get in the way of his return to competitive tennis once the sport resumes after the Coronavirus pandemic. Djokovic has become the fourth player to test positive for Coronavirus after his "Adria Tour", which took place in the Balkans with zero social distancing. The world number one organised the tennis event which took place in Belgrade, in Serbia and Zadar, in Croatia. Fans were able to freely mingle with players, who also played basketball and danced in nightclubs. Two members of Djokovic's support staff along with players Grigor Dimitrov, Borna Coric and Victor Troicki (with his pregnant wife) have tested positive. In a statement, the Serbian said that his wife, Jelena, also tested positive for COVID-19, but his children tested negative. Defending his tournament, he said : "Everything we did in the past month, we did with a pure heart and sincere intentions. Our tournament meant to unite and share a message of solidarity and compassion throughout the region. The tour has been designed to help both established and up and coming tennis players from south-eastern Europe to gain access to some competitive tennis while the various tours are on hold due to the COVID-19 situation. It was all born with a philanthropic idea, to direct all raised funds towards people in need and it warmed my heart to see how everybody strongly responded to this". He continued : "We organised the tournament at the moment when the virus has weakened, believing that the conditions for hosting the Tour had been met. Unfortunately, this virus is still present, and it is a new reality that we are still learning to cope and live with. I am hoping things will ease with time so we can all resume lives the way they were. I am extremely sorry for each individual case of infection. I hope that it will not complicate anyone's health situation and that everyone will be fine. I will remain in self-isolation for the next 14 days, and repeat the test in five days". The last two stages of the exhibition (Banja Luka and Sarajevo) have been cancelled.

The Japan Tennis Association has today announced the decision to cancel the Rakuten Open Tennis Championships, which were due to take place from October 5-11, due to the health & safety concerns surrounding the ongoing Coronavirus crisis.The scrapping of the tournamen raises some doubts over the traditional “Asian swing”, when the ATP tour takes in several tournaments in Asia. According to a revised schedule to take account of Coronavirus, tournaments were also due to take place in the Chinese cities of Chengdu, Zhuhai, Beijing and Shanghai. Japan Open organisers said on their website it would be the first time the tournament had been cancelled since 1972. They said they considered various options, including restricting entry and holding the competition in empty stadiums, but eventually decided safety could not be guaranteed. “Given concerns about a second wave of the infection both in Japan and overseas, we came to the anguished conclusion that we had to cancel”, they said. Japan has been relatively lightly affected by the Coronavirus compared to many western countries, with just over 900 deaths from 17,000 cases. But a recent spate of cases in Tokyo has raised fears of a possible second wave. There was no indication that the WTA event scheduled for November had yet been cancelled.

The ATP, in collaboration with the WTA, ITF, USTA and the FFT, has issued a revised provisional calendar that sets a pathway for the resumption of the Tour for the first time since the suspension of professional tennis in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The WTA has announced a plan to restart the suspended season at the Palermo Ladies Open in Italy on August 3rd : in a statement, the principal organizing body of women's professional tennis released a provisional calendar for the rest of the season and added that a five-month break due to the coronavirus pandemic would come to an end, subject to approval from the Italian government.The new-look ATP Tour calendar intends to resume on August 14th with the Citi Open, the ATP 500 event in Washington, D.C., followed by the Western & Southern Open, the Cincinnati ATP Masters 1000 event, to be hosted at Flushing Meadows, in the lead up to the US Open, which begins on August 31st. The revised calendar includes the Generali Open, an ATP 250 event in Kitzbühel, which coincides with the second week of the US Open, so the top-10 singles players will not be eligible to compete in Kitzbühel unless they have played, and already lost, at the US Open. Following New York, the Mutua Madrid Open and the Internazionali BNL d' Italia, ATP Masters 1000 events on clay in Madrid and Rome, respectively, will take place ahead of the French Open, which is scheduled to start on September 27th, in Paris. The event at Roland Garros will also feature a singles qualifying draw the week prior. The calendar is subject to change and continued assessments will be made relating to health & safety, international travel policies, and governmental approval of sporting events. All events will be held under strict guidelines related to health & safety, social distancing, reduced or no fans on-site. A further update on the intended schedule beyond Roland Garros, including a possible Asia swing ahead of the European indoor swing culminating with the season-ending ATP Finals in London, is expected in mid-July. "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 collaborative effort and we hope to add more events to the calendar as the situation evolves. I would like to recognise our tournaments’ efforts to operate during these challenging times, as well as our players who will be competing under different conditions". The ATP Challenger Tour will also resume from the week of 17 August, in parallel with the ITF World Tennis Tour. The ATP Rankings have been frozen since March 16th, 2020. As the situation continues to evolve on a weekly basis, a determination will be made in the coming weeks with respect to the most appropriate and fair way for the rankings to resume in parallel with the resumption of the Tour.