(Reuters) – The Wuhan Open, a 1000 tournament on the women’s tennis schedule, is returning after being absent since 2019. Organisers have announced that the event will take place in the Chinese city of Wuhan in October, according to a report from Xinhua News Agency on Wednesday.
The tournament has been missing from the WTA circuit since the discovery of COVID-19 in Wuhan. This city was the site of the first lockdown of the pandemic in January 2020. Despite this, Wuhan has a strong connection to tennis, boosted by players like former Australian Open and French Open champion Li Na and Australian Open finalist Zheng Qinwen.
Jorge Salkeld, Senior Vice President of Octagon Tennis, the organisers of the event, expressed excitement about bringing the WTA 1000 back to Wuhan. He was reported by Xinhua news agency as saying, “We are delighted to announce the return of the WTA 1000 event to Wuhan, and reignite the thrill of elite tennis competition in one of Asia’s most vibrant cities.”
The Wuhan Open is scheduled to take place from October 7 to 13 at the Optics Valley International Tennis Center in Wuhan. This will mark a significant moment for the city, which has seen a surge in tennis popularity over the past two decades.
With the announcement of the tournament’s return, tennis fans and players can look forward to witnessing top-tier competition in Wuhan once again. The event’s presence in the city reflects Wuhan’s status as a hub for tennis in Asia.
Reporting by Shifa Jahan in Bengaluru, editing by Pritha Sarkar
