The 2020 Madrid Open, one of more than 30 professional tournaments canceled or postponed because of the novel coronavirus, is going to be contested April 27-30 by tennis players holding controllers instead of rackets.
The clay-court tournament on Monday announced its plan to go virtual, saying it will involve “the world’s biggest tennis stars squaring off from their own homes.”
There will be 150,000 euros (about $160,000) in prize money each for the men’s and women’s events, with the winners deciding how much they want to donate to tennis players who are having a hard time financially without any tournaments to enter. An additional 50,000 euros (about $55,000) will be given to reduce the social impact of the pandemic.
The list of players who will “compete” will be released later.
The Madrid Open was supposed to be played May 1-10, but the entire European clay circuit was abandoned by the ATP and WTA. Both tours are suspended until at least July 13.
Wimbledon was canceled entirely for 2020, while the French Open has been postponed from May until September.
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