ATP Cup faces chop

Open reschedule will force cut

THE much-hyped ATP Cupis likely to be the biggest casualty of the Australian Open calendar shuffle which now appears headed towards a February 1 start date.

Last year the men’s tour launched the new event – a team competition featuring 24 countries played across three cities – in the lead-up to the Australian Open.

It was viewed as a replacement for the Hopman Cup and was hailed a success, with world No.1 Novak Djokovic leading Serbia to victory.

But it won’ t happen in 2021, with the strict quarantine of players when they arrive in Melbourne meaning there won’t be the scope for an event of that nature.

One scenario which has come out of the US from sources close to the ATP has the Open starting on February 1 after a week of qualifiers and lead-up tournaments. Sports Illustrated’s Jon Wertheim has reported that players would likely travel to Australia between January 5-7 and play competitive matches in the week starting January 25.

A full-sized Australian Open with 128 men and women in each singles draw would begin on February 1 – two weeks after the scheduled start time of January 18.

Tennis Australia was hopeful of relocating its pre-Open events, usually held in Brisbane, Hobart and Adelaide, to Melbourne and regional Victoria. It’s likely these tournaments would be held instead of the ATP Cup.

Players have made it clear they won’t play in the Open if they aren’t afforded proper training and match play in the lead-up to the opening Grand

Slam of the year. They are also keen on training while in their 14-day quarantine period, rather than being locked in their hotel rooms – another sticking point in negotiations between TA and the Victorian government.

The delay would almost certainly force the Rotterdam Open, an ATP 500-level event in the Netherlands scheduled for February 8, to be postponed.

The Rio Open in Brazil, scheduled for February 15, would also be impacted.