With the ATP and WTA tours suspended until August due to the coronavirus, a new-look tennis calendar has emerged for June and July.
A string of exhibition tournaments has been lined up to fill the void and, hopefully, prepare the game’s stars for more meaningful action – such as the US Open and French Open – in the months ahead.
Most will be played behind closed doors with social-distancing measures in place.
Many of the sport’s leading names have already signed up to play, including ATP world number one Novak Djokovic, who has set up his own Adria Tour in the Balkans which looks the pick of the men’s events as it will also feature Dominic Thiem, Alex Zverev and Marin Cilic.
Another event to look out for will be the Ultimate Tennis Showdown at the Mouratoglu Academy in Nice where organizers are promising four current top-10 players, with Stefanos Tsitsipas widely expected to be among them. David Goffin has already confirmed.
Former Wimbledon champion Andy Murray is expected to play his first match since November in London later this month against the best British players. However, there is no news yet on a return to match play for Rafael Nadal or Roger Federer – the latter is still recovering after undergoing knee surgery in February.
On the women’s side, this month’s Credit One Bank Invitational looks the jewel in the crown.
Reigning US Open champion Bianca Andreescu is scheduled to return to action for the first time since October following injury, while Australian Open queen Sofia Kenin is also due to compete. Two-time Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka, 2017 US Open winner Sloane Stephens and Olympic gold medallist Monica Puig are also on the entry list.
The ATP and WTA tours are currently due to resume on August 1.
As the calendars stand, the first events back are due to be the Citi Open in Washington (both tours) and the Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic in San Jose (WTA only).
Here’s a list of the exhibition tournaments coming your way in June and July. Many will be streamed via social media platforms and bookmaker sites with betting odds likely to be offered on most, if not all, matches.
When: June 3-18
Where: Auckland, New Zealand
Surface: Hard
Players: Ben McLachlan, Artem Sitak
Format: Eight three-man teams in a round-robin. Top four to SFs
When: June 3-6
Where: Prague, Czech Republic
Surface: Clay
Players:
Format: Round-robin, two groups of three – winners of each to final
When: June 4-7
Where: Osijek, Croatia
Players:
Format: Single-set men’s singles, women’s singles, men’s doubles and mixed doubles matches. Other details TBC.
When: June 9-July 26
Where: multiple venues, Germany (final in Großhesselohe)
Players: Jan-Lennard Struff, Dominik Koepfer, Peter Gojowczyk, Kevin Krawietz and others.
Format: Eight groups of four, top two in each to next round which will produce the semi-finalists.
When: June 13-July 12
Where: Nice, France
Players:
Organizers say three current top-10 players and one former top-10 player will complete the line-up.
Format: 10 players; round-robin (further details TBC)
When: June 13-July 4
Where: Belgrade, Serbia (Jun 13-14), Zadar, Croatia (Jun 20-21), TBC, Montenegro (Jun 27-28), Banja Luka, Bosnia-Herzegovina (Jul 3-4)
Surface: Clay
Players:
(not all players will compete at all venues)
Format: Each venue stages its own tournament – two groups of four; winners to final; Fast4
When: June 13-July 27
Where: Czech Republic – Prague (Jun 13-15), Prostejov (Jun 23-25), TBC (Jul 11-13), TBC (Jul 25-27)
Surface: Clay in Prague; others TBC
Players:
Team one
Team two
Format: Each venue stages its own tournament – two teams of four; three singles and one doubles each day.
When: June 15-July 26
Where: Belgrade, Serbia
Players:
Format: First round – Eight groups of four, top two to next round; Second round – six groups of four (16 qualifiers plus wild cards), top two to next round; Third round – Four groups of four, winners to finals week.
When: June 15-21
Where: Todi, Italy
Surface: Clay
Players: Jannik Sinner and other Italian stars
Format: Separate men’s and women’s fields
When: June 16-July 26
Where: multiple venues, Germany (final in Versmold)
Star players: Laura Siegemund, Anna-Lena Friedsam, Mona Barthel
Format: Six groups of four, top two in each to next round which will produce the semi-finalists
When: June 23-28
Where: Roehampton, London, Great Britain
Surface: Indoor hard
Players:
Singles
Doubles: Jamie Murray and others
Format: Eight-man singles – two groups of four, top two to SFs; Six-pair doubles
When: June 23-28
Where: Charleston, South Carolina, USA
Players:
Format: Two teams of eight (captained by Keys and Mattek-Sands); 16 singles and eight doubles matches.
When: July 3-5 (Tier 1), 10-12 (Premier), 17-19 (Tier 1), 24-26 (Premier)
Where: Roehampton, London, Great Britain
Players: TBC (entry deadline 18 days before each event)
Format: Four separate tournaments featuring 16-player men’s and women’s knockout singles fields. The Premier events will also have an eight-pair doubles field using a Fast4 format.
When: July 5
Where: Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina
Surface: Clay
Players: Novak Djokovic, Damir Dzumhur
When: July 7-11
Where: Kitzbuhel, Austria
Players: Dominic Thiem, Gael Monfils and six others
Format: Two groups of four, winners to SFs.
When: July 10-August 2
Where: Spain – Lleida (Jul 10-12), Madrid (Jul 17-19), Villena (Jul 24-26), Aviles (Jul 31-Aug 2)
Players:
Format: Knockout in Lleida and Villena; Team competition (two teams of five) in Madrid and Aviles.
An equivalent women’s competition is also planned but details are yet to be announced.
When: July 12-August 2
Where: The Greenbrier Resort, West Virginia, USA
Players: Sofia Kenin, Sloane Stephens, Grigor Dimitrov, Sam Querrey, Tennys Sandgren, Neal Skupski among those confirmed
Format: Nine teams compete in 63-match regular season; top four to semi-finals
When: July 13-15
Where: Steffi Graf Stadium, Berlin, Germany
Surface: Grass
Players: Dominic Thiem, Alex Zverev, Nick Kyrgios, Jannik Sinner, Elina Svitolina, Kiki Bertens, Julia Goerges, Andrea Petkovic
Format: Separate six-player men’s and women’s knockout fields.
When: July 14-18
Where: Roehampton, London, Great Britain
Surface: Hard
Players: Harriet Dart, Naomi Broady, Samantha Murray, Jodie Burrage, Emma Raducanu, plus other British players (entry deadline June 16, full list to be revealed on June 19).
Format: Sixteen-player singles field, split into two ‘divisions’ – Premier and Division One. Two groups of four in each division, top two to SFs. Eight-team doubles field using competition format.
When: July 16-19
Where: Templehof Airport, Berlin
Players: Dominic Thiem, Alex Zverev, Nick Kyrgios, Jannik Sinner, Elina Svitolina, Kiki Bertens, Julia Goerges, Andrea Petkovic
Format: Separate six-player men’s and women’s knockout fields.
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