WTA tour suspended until May 2 due to coronavirus scare

Florida [USA], Mar 16 : Amid the global coronavirus outbreak, the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) on Monday suspended the upcoming WTA tournaments in Stuttgart, Istanbul, and Prague until May 2.

"Due to the ongoing global coronavirus outbreak, the WTA tournaments in Stuttgart, Istanbul and Prague will not be held as scheduled. We regret this is the case for all of our loyal fans, players, sponsors and all those who support women's professional tennis," said WTA spokesperson in an official release.

"At this point in time, the WTA Tour is now suspended until May 2. We will make a decision in the week ahead regarding the remaining WTA European clay court events and will continue to monitor this situation closely and its impact on the 2020 WTA Tour season," the release further read.

Earlier on March 8, BNP Paribas Open was postponed after the Riverside County Public Health Department declared a public health emergency.

The World Health Orgsation (WHO) on Friday declared that the epicentre of the coronavirus pandemic has moved from China, where new cases reported have drastically decreased, to Europe, where most countries are seeing a climb in infections and fatalities.

( With inputs from ANI )