ATP ISSUES CALENDAR UPDATES, ANNOUNCES NEW EVENTS

LONDON: The ATP has issued updates to the 2021 ATP Tour calendar alongside measures to create increased playing opportunities, in the face of scheduling challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The updates are headlined by the addition of two new ATP 250 events, granted as single-year licenses for the 2021 season, in Singapore, following the conclusion of the Australian Open, and Marbella, following the Miami Open presented by Itaú, from 5 April.

Other measures to create additional playing opportunities include the expansion of the Singles Main Draw/Qualifying Draw size at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships from 32/16 to 48/24, while the Qualifying Draw size at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel will increase from 16 to 32. In addition, qualifying draw sizes at ATP 250 Cordoba Open, Argentina Open (Buenos Aires) and Chile Dove Men+Care Open (Santiago) are also to be expanded from 16 to 32.

Elsewhere, the Hungarian Open, the ATP 250 clay-court tournament typically held in April in Budapest, has been approved for relocation to Belgrade, Serbia, from 2021.

The Fayez Sarofim & Co. U.S. Men's Clay Court Championship, the ATP 250 event in Houston, typically scheduled in April, has announced it will not take place in 2021. The ATP continues to assess opportunities for additional single-year licenses to fill any gaps in the calendar and will communicate any additions in due course.