The French Open is set to be delayed by a week to May 30 because of the third wave of Covid-19 cases in France, leaving only 15 days between the end of the championship on June 13 and the start of Wimbledon on June 28.
An announcement is expected today confirming the switch after discussions in recent days between the French Tennis Federation and government officials. It means that players will have less time to transition between clay and grass courts in a return to the tight summer schedule that existed up until 2014 before Wimbledon moved back a week to allow for longer preparations.
While the French Open will now encroach on grass-court tournaments that are scheduled to start on June 7, it is unlikely that these will be cancelled. ATP and WTA events in Nottingham, Stuttgart and Rosmalen will still be able to welcome players who have lost in the first week of competition at Roland Garros. The Queen’s Club Championships gets under way on June 14.
Sources said last night that there was no prospect of Wimbledon also moving back a week as a result. The All England Club are planning for a reduced-capacity championship that finishes on July 11, only 13 days before the tennis event at the Tokyo Olympics is due to start.
This is the second consecutive year that the French Open has had to move dates because of the pandemic. Last year there was a more drastic switch, from May to September.
