New York (dpa) - The US Open of tennis professionals in New York should take place despite the coronavirus pandemic.
New York governor Andrew Cuomo cleared the way on Tuesday and allowed the tennis tournament, although the city is particularly hard hit by the pandemic. The Grand Slam tournament from August 31 to September 13 will therefore be held under strict hygiene and safety requirements and without spectators.
It is planned that the players will be accommodated in an airport hotel and should have almost no access to Manhattan. In addition, the coaching staff of the athletes should be significantly reduced.
Due to the corona virus pandemic, the official game operation on the tennis tour is currently suspended until July 31. The classic lawn at Wimbledon had already been canceled. It now seems unrealistic that the French Open will be played in Paris at the end of September as planned by the organizers. However, a decision is still pending here.
It remains to be seen how the players react to the plans. Several stars had commented critically. According to media reports, world ranking second Simona Halep from Romania has already decided not to participate in the US Open 2020 due to the Corona crisis.
The world number one Novak Djokovic made headlines at the weekend with the Adria Tour he organized. In the show fight series, in which Germany's number one Alexander Zverev and Austria's Dominic Thiem also took part, no consideration was given to distance rules. On Monday, a video caused a stir on social media, showing Djokovic, Zverev and Thiem at a party in a club.
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