ATP Releases Tennis Schedule For Remainder of 2020: Rome Moved Up, Hamburg Precedes French Open

By Ricky Dimon

The ATP Tour announced on Friday its planned schedule for the rest of the 2020 season, starting with the Western & Southern Open later this month.

Formerly in Cincinnati, that Masters 1000 event will precede the U.S. Open–both at the Billie Jean King National Tennis in New York. The tour will then move immediately to the clay courts of Europe, with the Rome Masters to follow the U.S. Open. Rome had been scheduled for two weeks after the USO, but it has been moved up a week now that Madrid is cancelled. The abbreviated clay-court swing will continue thereafter with Hamburg and the French Open. Clay will be followed by the European indoor swing in St. Petersburg, Antwerp, Moscow, Vienna, Paris, Sofia, and London (the Nitto ATP Finals).

“Tennis is starting to find its way back and, while we must first and foremost look after the health and safety of everyone involved, we are hopeful we will be able to retain these playing opportunities and produce a strong finish to the season,” said ATP chairman Andrea Gaudenzi. “I would like to commend the tournaments for their continued commitment, flexibility and resourcefulness in finding solutions to operate under these challenging circumstances.”

Cincinnati will have a Friday final in order to give players at least some rest prior to the U.S. Open. Semifinalists at the season’s second slam will get byes in Rome, where a Monday final is scheduled.

Madrid’s cancellation also means that Hamburg gets a spot in between Rome and the French Open. Hamburg, a 500-point tournament originally scheduled for mid-July, will now begin on Sept. 19.

“We are very happy that we could get this great spot on the provisional calendar of the ATP,” tournament director Sandra Reichel assured. “The health and safety of the players, their teams, fans and all people involved in the tournament remains our top priority.”

“We have raised the venue to a new level,” said tournament owner Alexander Otto.”Getting the opportunity to open the Centre Court with a tournament to be held just ahead of the French Open is fantastic. Players and spectators will be delighted with the new Rothenbaum Tennis Stadium.”

Additional news coming from the ATP on Friday is that the Nitto ATP Finals will be played at the O2 Arena without fans, per London city guidelines. The NextGen ATP Finals–the year-end championship for players 21 and under–have been cancelled. St. Petersburg, meanwhile, has been upgraded from a 250 to a 500.

Ricky contributes to10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand. You can follow him on twitter at @Dimonator