Tennis
FRENCH OPEN ORGANISERS DEFEND DECISION TO MOVE TOURNAMENT TO SEPTEMBER, SAY IT WAS ‘UNTHINKABLE’ TO CANCEL IT
French Open organisers said it was unthinkable for them to cancel the 2020 edition of the clay-court Grand Slam after they received a barrage of criticism for rescheduling the event in the middle of the hard-court season because of the coronavirus pandemic.
“For us it was unthinkable (to cancel), the only thing we had in mind was the interest of the tournament and of the players,” French tennis federation president Bernard Giudicelli told reporters.
The tournament, which was due to be held from May 24-June 7, will now be staged from Sept 20-Oct 4, meaning it will start one week after the US Open and clash with many other hard-court tournaments usually staged during that time.
“We had exchanges with the ATP, the WTA, the ITF and we informed the other Grand Slam organisers,” said Giudicelli.
Asked what the US Open organisers’ reaction was, Giudicelli said he could not tell because he did not place the call himself.
However, he defended the FFT’s choice by saying the hefty prize money would help players in need after weeks out of competitive tennis.
The men’s ATP Tour had previously announced a six-week suspension due to the pandemic that has ground global sport to a halt while the WTA, which runs the women’s tournaments, had postponed events till May 2.
The International Tennis Federation (ITF) has also suspended all its events, including next month’s newly-launched Fed Cup finals in Budapest.
“I don’t think it’s the date that’s a problem, I think the problem is the calendar,” said Giudicelli. “Cancelling would have meant a considerable absence of revenues for the players who have already been hit by a succession of cancellations.”
The prize money for the 2019 edition of Roland Garros, which has undergone a major revamp of the grounds including the installation of a retractable roof on the main Philippe Chatrier court, was €42.66 million (S$67 million).
The FFT general director Jean-Francois Vilotte said the French Open was not a commercial entity, saying all the revenues were invested into developing the tournament and tennis in France.
Argentina’s 36-year-old Marco Trungelliti proved tennis dreams do not come with an expiration date when he became the oldest first-time tour-level finalist in the Open Era after beating the top seed at the Grand Prix Hassan II semi-finals in Marrakech on Saturday.
Trungelliti, who came through the tournament’s qualifiers, upset Italy’s defending champion Luciano Darderi 6-4 7-6(2) to break the previous record held by Victor Estrella Burgos of the Dominican Republic, who reached his first final aged 34 years in 2015.
Darderi, ranked 19 in the world, was only six-years-old when Trungelliti turned pro in 2008. With the victory, Trungelliti secured just his second career top-20 win.
“Of course, I believed it, that’s one of the reasons that I’m here. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be possible,” Trungelliti said in the on-court interview.
“I’ve worked a lot, me and my team and also my wife, my kid. We all believed in breaking the record basically and that’s exactly what we have done now.”
The milestone caps a remarkable journey for Trungelliti, who made his first ATP Tour semi-final in 2018 in Umag, Croatia – 402 weeks ago.
Having entered the tournament ranked 117 in the world, Trungelliti’s breakthrough week has already guaranteed he will crack the top 100 for the first time. He is currently ranked number 75 in the live rankings.
“It’s been happening the whole week, leaving the court with a victory,” added Trungelliti, who has dropped only one set at the tournament. “So hopefully (there) is one more to go.”
He will face Rafael Jodar on Sunday after the Spaniard prevented an all-Argentine final with a 6-2 6-1 victory over Camilo Ugo Carabelli.
-Reuters
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Serena Williams has been listed as eligible to return to tennis by the sport’s drug-testing body (ITIA) as of February 22, though it remains unclear whether the 23-time Grand Slam champion will make a stunning comeback to the women’s tour.
The 44-year-old raised eyebrows late last year after rejoining the tennis anti-doping testing pool, though she denied at the time the move signalled she was preparing to return to the sport she dominated for nearly two decades.
She reignited speculation last month when she deflected questions about a possible return during an appearance on NBC’s “Today” show.
The Women’s Tennis Association did not immediately respond to a request for comment outside normal business hours.
Williams, who won her last Grand Slam singles title in 2017, has not competed since the 2022 U.S. Open.
-Reuters
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Serena Williams has re-entered the tennis anti-doping testing pool but the 23-times Grand Slam champion denied on Tuesday that the move had anything to do with her making a return to the sport she dominated for nearly two decades.
The International Tennis Integrity Agency confirmed to Reuters that Williams, who has not competed since the 2022 U.S. Open, was among the list of players in its testing pool, which requires individuals to provide their whereabouts at any given time, every day, and participate in random testing
But as the story of 44-year-old Williams’ inclusion on the list, first reported earlier on Tuesday by The Athletic, gained traction and sparked talk about her potential return, the tennis great took to social media to deny a comeback was in her plans.
“Omg yall I’m NOT coming back. This wildfire is crazy,” Williams wrote on X.
Her agent did not immediately respond to an email from Reuters asking why the player had re-entered the testing pool.
Williams’ name appears on the ITIA website’s list of retired players and would be able to return to a sanctioned event after making herself available for out-of-competition testing for at least six months.
Last week former world number one Williams posted a series of photos on Instagram showing herself on a tennis court with her youngest daughter, Adira River, whom she gave birth to in August 2023.
In August 2022, ahead of her final U.S. Open, Williams announced in a Vogue article that she was “evolving away from tennis.”
Williams, who won her last Grand Slam singles title in 2017, had been chasing an elusive 24th crown that would have drawn her level with Australian Margaret Court, who holds the record.
The American came tantalisingly close to achieving that feat, featuring in four major finals since giving birth to her first daughter, Olympia, in 2017.
-Reuters
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