(Reuters) – Britain’s Jamie Murray says organizers might find it difficult to reschedule Wimbledon for later in the season if the Grand Slam is postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
A decision regarding the June 29-July 12 grasscourt event will be made next week but organizers have already ruled out staging the tournament without spectators.
Almost 489,000 people have been infected globally by the virus and over 22,000 have died, according to a Reuters tally.
“I don’t know how long they could push it back,” Murray, a two-time Wimbledon mixed doubles champion, told BBC Scotland’s The Nine.
“For them, optics don’t necessarily look great, I guess, if there’s sporting events all over the world getting canceled and they’re trying to crack on with things.”
The Australian Open, the year’s first Grand Slam, was completed before the coronavirus outbreak brought global sport to a standstill, including the suspension of ATP and WTA Tours.
Organizers of the French Open have already made the decision to move the claycourt tournament to Sept. 20-Oct. 4 from its May start.
“There’s a lot of other stakeholders, a lot of other tournaments to consider,” said Murray.
“Even things like daylight for the tournament. Once the tournament gets put back, there’s less and less daylight. When you play at Wimbledon normally, you can play until 10 at night.”
(Reporting by Hardik Vyas in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
