- New lead-in schedule to the Australian swing
- New tournament added to help players who have not been able to train
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA – A new WTA tournament has been added and ATP events have been pushed back 24 hours to help players in lockdown.
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Lead-in schedule revamped
Tennis Australia have worked with players and the Tours to come up with a changed lead-up so that the 72 players in hard lockdown get a chance to train ahead of three weeks of competition.
WTA Lead-up Events
There will now be three WTA 500 events. The two original events running from 31 January to 6 February will have slightly reduced draw sizes, and a third event is now planned between Wednesday 3 February – Sunday 7 February.
WTA CEO Steve Simon said: “This revised schedule comprised of three WTA 500 events in the week leading into the upcoming Australian Open will allow for our athletes coming out of the respected quarantine period to properly focus on their preparation in a return to competition.”
ATP Lead-up Events
The two ATP events and ATP Cup will be pushed back by 24 hours. The two ATP 250 events will now start on Monday 1 February but has an increased singles main draw size of 56, and the ATP Cup will now start on Tuesday 2 February.
ATP Chairman Andrea Gaudenzi added: “We appreciate the positive spirit of collaboration demonstrated by our friends at Tennis Australia and the ATP as these solutions were worked through in recent days. All of our players appreciate the opportunity to be here in Melbourne and look forward to getting on the court to compete and entertain the terrific fans that are here with some great tennis over the weeks ahead in what will be a very a safe and healthy environment.”
“Our number one goal with Tennis Australia and the WTA was to be as fair as possible to the players coming out of a hard quarantine.
“The extra 24 hours before the first ATP Tour events together with priority over practice and preparation will help. We are eager to start what I am sure will be a fantastic summer of tennis in Melbourne in front of our great Australian fans.”
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The new Australian summer tennis schedule
Craig Tiley, Australian Open Tournament Director said: “This has been a particularly challenging time for the athletes in hard lockdown and we, along with the WTA and ATP, aim to do everything we can to help.
“These changes to the lead-in events have been made to give the 72 players a little bit of extra time to help them prepare. We also will prioritise them for things like practice sessions, gym and ice baths.”
| WTA 500 Gippsland Trophy | 31 January – 6 February |
| WTA 500 Yarra Valley Classic | 31 January – 6 February |
| ATP 250 Great Ocean Road Open | 1-7 February |
| ATP 250 Murray River Open | 1-7 February |
| ATP Cup | 2-6 February |
| WTA 500 Grampians Trophy | 3-7 February |
| Australian Open | 8-21 February |
| WTA 250 Phillip Island Trophy | 13-19 February |
| WTA 500 Adelaide International | 22-27 February |
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