French Open 2021 tennis news - Roland Garros postponed by one week as organisers hope for fans

Updated 08/04/2021 at 08:34 GMT

The organisers of Roland Garros have taken the decision to postpone the season's second Grand Slam by a week in the hope of allowing fans to be in attendance for the event in Paris. A statement read: "For the fans, the players and the atmosphere, the presence of spectators is vital for our tournament, the spring's most important international sporting event."

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The French Open has been postponed by a week as organisers hope that more spectators will be permitted to attend the event.

Roland Garros will now be held from 30 May to 13 June with the qualifying rounds taking place the week before.

With France currently in a third nationwide lockdown amid a surge in Covid-19 cases, the French Tennis Federation said postponing was the "best solution".

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"I am delighted that the discussions with the public authorities, the governing bodies of international tennis, our partners and broadcasters, and the ongoing work with the WTA and ATP, have made it possible for us to postpone the 2021 Roland Garros tournament by a week," FFT president Gilles Moretton said.

It will give the health situation more time to improve and should optimise our chances of welcoming spectators at Roland Garros, into our newly-transformed stadium that now covers more than 30 acres.

"For the fans, the players and the atmosphere, the presence of spectators is vital for our tournament, the spring's most important international sporting event."

The postponement of the Grand Slam is set to have a significant impact on the ATP and WTA calendars, with the grass-court season scheduled to get underway on 7 June with tournaments in s'Hertogenbosch, Stuttgart and Nottingham.

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The ATP and WTA issued a joint statement making it clear that they were "working in consultation with all parties impacted by the postponement".

In the delayed 2020 edition, Rafael Nadal claimed an unprecedented 13th title in Paris, while Polish rising star Iga Swiatek won her first Grand Slam title without dropping a set.

The autumnal Roland Garros last year was played out in front of a crowd of 1,000 fans.

Amid the current surge in coronavirus cases, French president Emmanuel Macron previously said he expected the country's third lockdown to come to an end in mid-May.