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Ball boys and girls will wear gloves at the BNP Paribas Open international tennis tournament in Indian Wells, California, to combat the coronavirus outbreak, organizers announced.
After a case of COVID-19 was confirmed in the valley – the desert east of Los Angeles – organizers made the decision to cancel the tournament, a statement announced.
“There is too great a risk, at this time, to the public health of the Riverside County area in holding a large gathering of this size,” said Dr. David Agus, professor of Medicine and Biomedical Engineering at the University of Southern California. California. on Sunday.
“It is not in the public interest of the fans, the players and the surrounding areas for this tournament to take place. “We all have to come together to protect the community from the coronavirus outbreak.”
The decision to cancel the event was made after consulting with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the State of California.
Aside from the four Grand Slams, Indian Wells is one of the most prestigious events of the tennis season.
Dubbed the “fifth grand slam,” the tournament, located 130 miles east of Los Angeles, draws some of the largest crowds for a tennis event in North America. The tournament offers equal prize money for men and women, with a total prize pool of just over $17 million ($8,542,680 per Tour).
Many of the world's best players, including world No. 2 Rafael Nadal, had already arrived in California for the event where qualifying would begin on Monday, with main draw matches scheduled for Wednesday.
“We are very disappointed that the tournament will not take place, but the health and safety of the local community, fans, players, volunteers, sponsors, employees, suppliers and everyone involved in the event is paramount. extremely important,” said the tournament director. Tommy Haas. “We are prepared to celebrate on another date and will explore options.”
Any ticket holder can request a refund or credit for the 2021 tournament.
Steve Simon, president and CEO of the Women's Tennis Association (WTA), highlighted that the focus is firmly on “protecting the health of our players, staff, volunteers and fans who attend our events.”
“The WTA empathizes with those affected by the coronavirus in this region and around the world,” it said in a statement.
“We are disappointed that our fans will not be able to come and watch the event, and our players are also disappointed that they will not be competing for the next two weeks, along with the sponsors who support the event. However, we understand that the decision that has been made in the interest of public health and safety is the top priority at this time.
“It is too early to speculate on what will happen with other upcoming tournaments. We will continue to closely monitor the situation. Health and safety will always come first.”
Nadal, 33, reacted to the news on Twitter, calling the spread of the coronavirus “sad,” while Romanian player Sorana Cirstea criticized the WTA, saying she only found out about the news through Twitter.
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On Friday, competition organizers announced preventive measures to help stop the spread of the novel coronavirus with the expectation that Indian Wells would go ahead.
Ball boys and girls wore gloves on the court, as did restaurant workers, food supply workers and gatekeeper volunteers.
Although it is normally a ball boy's job to take care of the players' towels, they would not have been required to touch the towels. The players would have handled their own towels on the court, placing them on a chair at the back of the court during the game.
More than 250 hand sanitizing stations were set up around the complex and interaction between fans and players was expected to be limited.
A combined men's and women's tournament is scheduled for Miami later this month, but there has been no word on any changes to that event.
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After Miami, the men's and women's tours head to Europe for the start of the clay court season which includes, among others, an ATP and WTA event in Rome, Italy, the status of which is yet to be determined.
The new coronavirus has infected more than 108,000 people worldwide and killed more than 3,800, according to CNN's count.
