- The ATP and WTA have announced that no ranking points Wimbledon will not be taken into account in the official rankings
- The move came after Russia and Belarus were barred from competing due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
- The ruling means that Serbia’s Novak Djokovic, who is the defending men’s champion, will lose his rank as the world’s number one
Following the decision to exclude Russian and Belarusian competitors from the tournament, players will not receive any ranking points at Wimbledon.
Novak Djokovic plays against Italy’s Matteo Berrettini during men’s singles final match of Wimbledon Championships at The All England Tennis Club in Wimbledon 2021. Photo: Getty Images
Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the All England Tennis Clubs barred players from participating in any UK grass-court events.
Outside of Wimbledon, however, events like Queen’s and Eastbourne will maintain their ranking points.
The ATP stated that it is difficult and they have no option
“It is with great regret and reluctance that we see no option,” said the ATP.
Wimbledon, which begins on June 27, will not award ranking points in the junior and wheeled events, according to the International Tennis Federation (ITF).
The WTA stated that their stance ensures that WTA players have equality of opportunity to compete as individual citizens.
“If we do not take this stance, we abandon our fundamental principle and allow the WTA to become an example of support for nationality discrimination at other events and in other regions worldwide.”
Tennis Clubs in England issued a statement expressing great disappointment and stating that it was contemplating its options.
According to sports mail, more than 100 singles and doubles players signed a letter opposing the measure, which they see as piling one injustice on top of another, and this is highly doubtful to be the end of the issue.
As reality sets in, there will be a lot of pressure to reconsider, not just from the significant number of people who will have their rates artificially distorted.
The ruling means that Serbia’s Novak Djokovic, who is the defending men’s champion, will
lose his rank as the world number one.
Djokovic, the All England Club’s six-time champion, will therefore not retain the 2,000 ranking points he got whe he won the title last year.
The Serb is only 680 points ahead of the world’s number two nearest rival, Daniil Medvedev.
The ATP stated in announcing the move that such decisions [by Wimbledon] set a harmful precedent for the tour’s future if left unaddressed.
The four Grand Slam tournaments will now consider their options, with the Australian and US Opens likely to support the All England Club.
It could lead to exploring an option shadow banking system, while connections with the tour’s rump will be badly harmed.
The move will see Novak Djokovic loosing 2000 ranking points Photo/SBNation.com
Wimbledon will undoubtedly suffer due to the move, as it puts an asterisk against everything that has been accomplished after two interrupted years in a row.
One unintended consequence is that some players will typically feel less inspired and will show up solely for the money, even if this is not the case for the title challengers.
Novak Djokovic and Nadal criticized Wimbledon’s move to ban tennis players from Russia and Belarus in recent weeks.
During the recent Madrid Open, Rafael Nadal stated that it was very unfair to my Russian tennis colleagues.
On the other hand, Djokovic called it crazy and contrasted the situation to his Australian Open saga, in which he was deported from the country following his refusal to get unvaccinated.
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