The United States Tennis Association (USTA) just announced the cancellation of the remaining Adult National Tournaments for Open, Age-Group, and Family Divisions for the rest of 2020. This follows the USTA's cancellation of all national junior tennis events until October 12, 2020.
Photo Credit: USTA (Fair Use) https://www.usta.com/en/home/play/adult-tennis/programs/national/designated-open-sectional-championship-schedule.html?fbclid=IwAR2c5Qg0lw2cwU7nPc2mGtO3b9p4JhyB6pacVQORt7GK0Syh2t30VJFjKDc
Earlier the International Tennis Federation (ITF) announced that the Young Seniors and Super Seniors World Championships will be cancelled until 2021.
Some tennis enthusiasts and doctors have asserted that tennis, particularly singles tennis, is one of the safest activities to do during the COVID19 pandemic. The rationale is that the players are separated by a net and can utilize certain techniques - not serving with the same balls, not shaking hands, etc. - that ensure proper social distancing.
However, no one has ever demonstrated in a scientific setting under controlled conditions (or uncontrolled conditions for that matter) that the novel coronavirus cannot be transmitted by playing tennis. If there is such a study, please provide a comment below with a reference. All reports of which we are aware are opinions from those in the field. They may be very valid opinions, based upon their experience and the best data available, but, they are opinions nonetheless.
No one has conducted an experiment under controlled conditions that shows a virus cannot be transmitted by two (or four) people playing tennis for an hour or two, or longer.
So, if tennis is so safe, then why are USTA and ITF cancelling tournaments?
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