MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Ash Barty, number one in the world, returns to competitive tennis after a long hiatus due to COVID-19 pandemic disease when she tops two WTA tournaments in Melbourne ahead of the Australian Open, organizers said Thursday.
The 24-year-old Queenslander has not played a game since February, opting out not to defend his French Open title and also jumping into the U.S. Open in New York when the novel coronavirus global sports damage.
The pandemic is still hitting the tennis calendar, with the first Grand Slam at Melbourne Park starting on February 8, three weeks later than planned.
Barty, who rose to the top of the women’s singles rankings during last year’s hurdles season, will play for the first time in 11 months at one of two WTA 500 events since Jan. 31-Feb. 6 as part of the Melbourne Summer Series.
The Gippsland Cup and Yarra Valley Classic, named after divisions in the state of Victoria, will feature 49 of the top 50 female players.
The 32 top players will be split over the two events, each featuring 64-singles and 32-doubles draws.
American Serena Williams, 39, will also return to competitive action after going out to the French Open with an injury and would hope to get some games under her belt before she starts. its bid for a 24th major title.
Players will begin reaching Down Under from January 15 and receive a mandatory 14-day quarantine before playing the warm-up events, which will be held at Melbourne Park.
Men’s top players such as Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic and Rafa Nadal number two in the world will represent the nations in the 12-team ATP Cup from February 1-5 with those unable to make the cut divided in two ATP 250 competitions.
Players including the Great Ocean Road Open and Murray River Open include Grand Slam winner Stan Wawrinka and local hope Nick Kyrgios.
“While we know the circumstances are special this year, it is a great help to consolidate such strong playing fields,” Cameron Pearson, head of TA major events, said in a statement.
Reporting by Sudipto Ganguly in Mumbai; edited by Richard Pullin