sport news Wimbledon STRIPPED of ranking points after banning Russian and Belarusian ... trends now
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This year's Wimbledon has been unceremoniously stripped of ranking points, in retaliation for its banning of players from Russia and Belarus.
In a highly provocative move the ATP and WTA Tours – who also represent the players – have decided that the tournament will not contribute towards the official rankings, thereby giving it almost exhibition status.
The ATP argued its case in a statement, saying of British tennis's stance: 'Unilateral decisions of this nature, if unaddressed, set a damaging precedent for the rest of the Tour. Discrimination by individual tournaments is simply not viable on a Tour that operates in more than 30 countries.'
Wimbledon has been stripped of ranking points after banning players from Russia and Belarus
It was also critical of the way that Wimbledon caved into government pressure. The statement added: 'We note that this was informal guidance, not a mandate, which offered an alternative option that would have left the decision in the hands of individual players competing as neutral athletes through a signed declaration. Our internal discussions with affected players in fact led us to conclude this would have been a more agreeable option for the Tour.'
The WTA Tour is expected to follow suit. Players will now lose their points from 2021, so the likes of Novak Djokovic will be denied the 2000 he won from twelve months ago. As expected, the pre-Wimbledon events in the UK have been spared the same treatment.
The move comes exactly one month
