Wimbledon could be postponed or even cancelled after All England Club chiefs called an “emergency meeting” for next week to discuss whether to go ahead with this year’s tournament amid the coronavirus outbreak.
Wimbledon is set to start in London on June 29, but the continuing spread of the virus has caused havoc with the sporting schedule and the grass-court Grand Slam could be the next major event to be delayed.
“The AELTC can confirm that it is continuing a detailed evaluation of all scenarios for The Championships 2020, including postponement and cancellation, as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak,” an All England Club statement said.
“An emergency meeting of the AELTC Main Board is scheduled for next week, and in preparation we are communicating closely with the LTA, and with the ATP, WTA, ITF and the other Grand Slams.” Pressure is growing on the All England Club to make a decision and organisers have ruled out playing the tournament behind closed doors.
“The build for The Championships is due to begin at the end of April,” the statement said.
“At this time, very short window is available to us to stage The Championships due to the nature of our surface suggests that postponement is not without significant risk and difficulty. Playing behind closed doors has been formally ruled out.”
Given it takes two months to get the Wimbledon site ready for the event, a decision needs to be made soon and All England Club chief executive Richard Lewis expects the call will be made at the emergency summit.