Wimbledon to abandon Russia, Belarus player ban – report

The chiefs of British tennis are set to scrap their controversial ban on Russian and Belarusian players ahead of this year’s Wimbledon championships, according to media reports.

The United Kingdom’s governing Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) came under pressure from the British government to impose a ban following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year.

Russian and Belarusian players were eventually barred from all five ATP tournaments staged by the LTA, including the longstanding Queen’s Club event in London.

The All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC), which runs Wimbledon, imposed a similar suspension.

However, Britain’s Daily Telegraph reported that “all expectations suggest that the AELTC will lower the ban on Russians and Belarusians”.

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It added players from those countries may need to sign a declaration promising they will not “promote or glorify” Russia president Vladimir Putin’s war in any way during the tournament.

The ATP, which runs the men’s professional tour, responded to last year’s ban by hitting British tennis with a $1 million fine, split between a $750,000 punishment for the LTA and a $250,000 penalty for the AELTC.

Both the ATP and the Women’s Tennis Association also stripped Wimbledon of its ranking points.

Ironically, the women’s singles title was won by Russian-born Elena Rybakina representing Kazakhstan.

There are now fears that if the ban remains in place, leading events such as Queen’s and Eastbourne could be removed from Britain, with yet more huge fines to follow.