Roger Federer and Serena Williams were among the tennis stars left devastated on Wednesday as Wimbledon was canceled for the first time since World War II due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The cancelation of the oldest Grand Slam at London’s All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club leaves the season in disarray, with no tennis set to be played until mid-July.
“Devastated,” eight-time champion Federer said on Twitter, while Williams, who has won the tournament seven times, said that she was shocked by the momentous decision.
Photo: Reuters
Wimbledon was scheduled to run for two weeks from June 29, with Novak Djokovic and Simona Halep set to defend their singles titles.
However, tournament heads on Wednesday bowed to the inevitable, saying in a statement that they had made the decision with “great regret.”
US tennis heads responded by saying that the US Open, scheduled to finish a week before the controversially rearranged French Open, was still due to take place as planned.
Club chairman Ian Hewitt said that the decision to cancel Wimbledon had not been taken lightly.
“It has weighed heavily on our minds that the staging of the championships has only been interrupted previously by world wars,” he said.
“But, following thorough and extensive consideration of all scenarios, we believe that it is a measure of this global crisis that it is ultimately the right decision to cancel this year’s Championships,” he added.
Halep took to Twitter to express her disappointment.
“So sad to hear @Wimbledon won’t take place this year,” she said. “Last year’s final will forever be one of the happiest days of my life! But we are going through something bigger than tennis and Wimbledon will be back! And it means I have even longer to look forward to defending my title.”
Two-time Wimbledon champion Andy Murray said: “Very sad that Wimbledon has been cancelled this year but with all that is going on in the world right now, everyone’s health is definitely the most important thing!”
The decision to cancel Wimbledon was widely expected, with the world struggling to contain the spread of COVID-19.
Organizers had earlier ruled out playing the event behind closed doors, while postponing it would also have created its own problems, with shorter days later in the English summer.
The ATP and WTA have also canceled the grass-court swing in the buildup to the tournament, meaning that the tennis season will not restart until July 13 at the earliest.
The US Tennis Association (USTA) said that it was sticking to its Aug. 31 to Sept. 13 dates for the US Open in New York.
“At this time, the USTA still plans to host the US Open as scheduled, and we continue to hone plans to stage the tournament,” it said in a statement.
“The USTA is carefully monitoring the rapidly changing environment surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, and is preparing for all contingencies,” it added.
American legend Billie-Jean King, a six-time Wimbledon women’s singles champion, said that canceling the tournament was the only option in the circumstances.
“I fully understand and support the decision of the committee and it is vital we keep our focus on those most impacted by this pandemic,” she said. “I have been fortunate to go to Wimbledon every year since 1961 and I am certainly going to miss it this year.”
The cancelation could mean multiple champions Federer, Serena Williams and Venus Williams have played at the club for the final time.
Federer and Serena Williams would be nearly 40 by next year’s championships and Venus Williams would be 41.
Serena, beaten in last year’s final by Halep, is stuck on 23 Grand Slam singles titles — agonizingly one away from equaling Australian Margaret Court’s record.
Tennis has endured a torrid time in the past several weeks, with the entire European clay-court season wiped out.
The French Tennis Federation provoked widespread anger with its unilateral decision to move the French Open from its original May 24 start date to begin on Sept. 20 — one week after the conclusion of the US Open.
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