Washington men’s tennis tourney nixed

The hard-court tournament in the nation’s capital that was supposed to mark the official return of men’s professional tennis amid the pandemic was scrapped Tuesday — but the group in charge of the U.S. Open immediately said the tuneup’s cancellation “in no way impacts” its Grand Slam event.

The Citi Open, scheduled to start with Aug. 13 qualifying, was called off because of what tournament manager Mark Ein said are “too many unresolved external issues, including various international travel restrictions as well as troubling health and safety trends.”

The number of coronavirus cases has been spiking in spots throughout the United States.

The men’s and women’s pro tours both have been suspended since March because of the COVID-19 outbreak and have been eyeing a return to action next month. The first event on the most recently announced version of the sport’s 2020 slate is a women’s clay-court tournament in Palermo, Italy, starting Aug. 3, and WTA spokeswoman Amy Binder said Tuesday that tour’s “provisional calendar remains on course to proceed at this time.”

As of now, the week of Aug. 10 includes women’s tournaments in Lexington, Kentucky — where 23-time Grand Slam singles champion Serena Williams is among the announced entrants — and the Czech Republic. But no official men’s competition.

With Washington’s ATP stop, where Nick Kyrgios was the champion last year, now gone, the first chance for men to play sanctioned matches will be the Masters-level event usually played in Cincinnati that was moved to the site of the U.S. Open in Flushing Meadows, starting Aug. 22.

Auto racing: Alex Zanardi, 53, the Italian auto racing champion-turned-Paralympic gold medalist, was transferred to a neurological rehabilitation center, a month after getting seriously injured in a handbike crash.

Baseball: Yankees RHP Masahiro Tanaka threw 20 pitches during batting practice and is on track to make his first start July 31 against the Red Sox after missing one turn in the rotation. Tanaka walked two in his one inning, his first time facing batters since he was hit in the head by Giancarlo Stanton’s line drive on July 4 . ... The Dodgers optioned INF Gavin Lux and agreed on a one-year deal with LHP Jake McGee.

NBA: The Grizzlies will be without F Justise Winslow for the rest of the NBA’s restarted season because of an injured hip.

NFL: The NFL Players Association said 95 players are known to have tested positive for the coronavirus. That number is up from 72 in the union’s last report on July 10. On Monday, the NFLPA and the NFL reached agreement on COVID-19 testing as rookies begin reporting to training camps. Players will be tested daily for the coronavirus for at least the first two weeks of training camp, per the league’s new testing protocols . ... The league is planning to allow players to have decals on the back of their helmets bearing names or initials of victims of systemic racism and police violence.

NHL: The Oilers’ Leon Draisaitl, the Avalanche’s Nathan MacKinnon and the Rangers’ Artemi Panarin were announced Hart Trophy finalists for the league’s MVP award. The three were also named finalists for the Ted Lindsay Trophy, honoring the league’s most outstanding player as voted on by players.