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What's the story?
The 2020 women's Xi'an Open has been abandoned due to the Coronavirus outbreak in China. The tournament was scheduled to take place from 13th to 19th April, however, unforeseen circumstances have forced WTA to drop the hardcourt tournament from their schedule.
The background
The Coronavirus outbreak in China has compelled several tournament organizers to pull their respective events out of the country.
The outbreak of the virus has also led to speculations over the upcoming Tokyo Olympics, while multiple nations have avoided visiting the regions around China owing to the disease.
The heart of the matter
As reported by Reuters, the WTA has taken the call to cancel the upcoming Xi'an Open. The health of the players could be at risk if the tournament goes ahead as planned and as a result, the 125K series which was set to feature 32 singles players and 16 doubles pairs has been called off.
There are a lot of tournaments set to take place in China during the second half of 2020. WTA stated that they will have a close look at the conditions before making any decision about future tournaments.
Zhengzhou, Jiangxi, Guangzhou, Wuhan, Beijing, Tianjin, and Zhuhai are set to host WTA events in September and October while the top eight women's players will compete in the Shenzen Open from November 1- November 8.
A WTA spokesperson opened up about the situation, saying:
"We continue to communicate with medical experts as information evolves on this virus, and we will work closely with them to monitor the situation."
What's next?
The Asian swing will only get underway in a few months by which time the spread of the Coronavirus should be contained. It remains to be seen whether other tournament organizers take any action in the coming weeks.
