TOPSHOT - A handout composite picture released by the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on July 15, 2019, shows 2019 Wimbledon Men's singles champion Serbia's Novak Djokovic (L) and Wimbledon Women's singles champion Romania's Simona Halep (R) posing for a photograph with their trophies at the Champions Dinner on July 14, 2019 in central London. (Photo by Thomas LOVELOCK / AELTC / AFP) (Photo credit should read THOMAS LOVELOCK/AFP via Getty Images)
The 2020 edition of Wimbledon was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic
The 2020 edition of Wimbledon was cancelled for the first time since World War II due to the coronavirus pandemic.
This came as a bit of a shock to the tennis fraternity, however, the decision was taken with the right intentions.
Wimbledon 2020 was scheduled to be held between 29 June and 12 July, but the coronavirus pandemic has made things difficult.
There is very little chance of things returning to normal before July and the rest of the grass-court season was also called off.
The ATP had taken a decision to end all tennis matches shortly after the 2020 Australian Open. That seemed to be a smart move given that the virus was still at large, however, the UK has been hit hard over the past few weeks.
Calling Wimbledon 2020 off keeps the players safe for now, but what happens to the rest of the schedule?
Stars such as Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Serena Williams are all doing their bit to stay in shape.
They have also constantly provided messages for all to remain indoors and avoid meeting up in large groups of people.
The Wimbledon championships were going to be one of the big events for Federer. The Swiss star confirmed that he was out of action due to knee surgery and had planned to return during the grass-court season.
However, with that now out of the question, Federer has more time to work on his game and return for the French Open.
The 2020 tennis schedule got a rude shock when the French Open decided to move between 20 September-4 October. The Grand Slam should have been held in May. However, their move, without the consent of others, greatly angered many tennis players.
This should be good news for the likes of Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal as they try to win another Slam.
Federer, for his part, doesn’t have the greatest record at Roland Garros/
There is no confirmation of when things can return to normal and it is the same for tennis too. Although Roland Garros believes it can be held in September, that depends on the coronavirus pandemic being controlled.
However, travel will be impacted hugely as some countries have been hit harder than others. Look at the US now, New York seems to be a battle ground. Italy, Spain and the UK are all reeling from the effects of the virus.
Shifting the US Open to the final months of the year just won’t be the same too.
The health and safety of all involved is important, and hopefully, things improve in the coming months.
We could see some tennis later in the year, but which tournaments can be held is still up in the air.
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