Indian Wells Tennis Event Will Be Postponed Again: Reports

Indian Wells became the first major sporting event in the U.S. to cancel in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Now it appears the event will be postponed again in 2021.

It is slated to run March 8-21, but tennis insider Jon Wertheim of Tennis Channel and Sports Illustrated reported on Twitter the event is expected to be postponed. The ATP did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Often called “the fifth major,” the dual ATP-WTA event generally features the biggest names outside of the four Grand Slam events, and its center court is the second-largest tennis arena in the world. Last year’s event was poised to hand out more than $15 million in prize money.

It remains unclear what will happen to the Miami Open (March 22-April 4), the second leg of the so-called “Sunshine Double” on American hardcourts in March.

The ATP and WTA Tours shut down for much of the spring and summer this year, with Wimbledon being canceled for the first time during peacetime.

The U.S. Open and French Open were both held, although the French was moved to October from its normal springtime slot on the calendar.

The Australian Open is now set to begin Feb. 8, although qualifying will take place outside the country.

UNIVERSAL TENNIS LAUNCHING $20 MILLION GLOBAL TOUR FOR PLAYERS RANKED 200-2,000

Universal Tennis announced the launch of the UTR Pro Tennis Series Tour in the United States. As part of its three year global UTR Pro Tennis Series Tour investing over $20M and enabling 140 worldwide annual events, it will feature 40 events (men and women) in select venues across the USA in 2021.  Each event will provide a minimum of $20,000 in player prize money and create more opportunities for elite junior, collegiate and pro players.

The UTR Pro Tennis Series Tour offers an innovative format, providing aspiring pro players with more opportunities to compete, improve their game and support themselves with prize money.  All events will be single gender, singles only, entry based on Universal Tennis Rating (UTR), and feature a 32 player group round robin followed by a World Cup-style playoff format. This format guarantees more player competition and results will count for UTR, the world’s most accurate global tennis rating system. 

“As part of our mission to support all facets of tennis, the UTR Pro Tennis Series Tour is founded on our desire to create a development tour to support elite players, coaches, organizers and Federations worldwide. The UTR Pro Tennis Series Tour will create more opportunities for aspiring professional players with UTR rankings of 200 to 2000 globally to compete and earn a living while working their way up to the highest level pro tours,” said Mark Leschly, Universal Tennis Chairman and CEO.

The USTA has collaborated with Universal Tennis as it relates to scheduling to ensure that these events are complementary to the competitive calendar. The Series will kick off with 15 events for men and women before the end of the first quarter of 2021 alone and will be held at four marquee venues across the United States. More events and locations will be announced shortly.

“At Charleston Tennis, it’s a guiding principle to support the game of tennis from recreational and junior players through to the highest levels of professional tennis. The UTR Pro Tennis Series Tour will fill a valuable role by providing eager, talented players additional opportunities for high level competitive match play and at the same time the ability to earn a better living.  We applaud Universal Tennis for identifying a need and are thrilled that this partnership will allow us to be part of the solution,” said Bob Moran, President Charleston Tennis LLC.

Locations and dates for upcoming UTR Pro Tennis Series events are as follows:

Naples, FL: Sanchez-Casal Academy

December 14, 2020 – Men

January 4, 2021- Women

January 11 – Men

January 18 – Men

March 8 – Men

Newport Beach, CA: The Tennis Club at Newport Beach

January 4 – Men

January 11 – Women

January 18 – Women

January 25 – Women

Las Vegas, NV: Darling Tennis Center

February 8 – Women

February 15 – Women

February 22 – Men

March 1 – Men

Charleston, SC: LTP Academy 

March 1- Women

March 8- Women