Wimbledon to consider Russia ban in 2023 as event seeks action against tours: Report

The Wimbledon Championships 2022 concluded on Sunday with Serbian tennis great Novak Djokovic picking up the men’s singles title, while Russian-born Kazakh tennis player Elena Rybakina won the women’s singles title a day before. The 2022 edition of the Grand Slam event didn’t feature the participation of players from Russia and Belarus, due to the ban on them by the All England Club. Meanwhile, as per fresh reports emerging in the UK, the ban on Russian and Belarussian players is likely to continue in 2023.

All England Club’s decision to ban the players created havoc in the tennis world, as it was praised by some and hated by others. The move proved to be an unprecedented one, as the All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) was just following the British government’s guidelines. However, AELTC’s decision was met by ATP, WTA and the International Tennis Federation (ITF) not awarding ranking points to players during the Wimbledon 2022. 

Novak Djokovic might drop below the ATP Top-10 rankings

This followed several players like former WTA World No. 1 Naomi Osaka pulling out of the tournament, as participating players also faced the blow of the decision. Although All England Club’s ban on Russian and Belarussian players was supposed to protect other players, things turned out to be contrasting after the points were stripped off. Most notably, the Wimbledon men’s singles champion Djokovic has already dropped from World No. 3 to World No. 7, despite winning the tournament, and can possibly drop below the top 10, due to his Covid-19 vaccination stance.

Although the ban on the Russian and Belarussian players was seen as a one-time thing, it is now being reported that the ban will remain in place if the British government continues its stance on the war in Ukraine. The Russian military forces started their invasion of Ukraine back in February 2022, which continues to date. As the war is unlikely to be resolved any time soon, this could possibly attract the same harsh approach by the British tennis governing body. 

At the same time, it is also being reported that the LTA is appealing both the Tours’ i.e. ATP and WTA’s decision at the Court of Arbitration for Sport. The entire scenario can be compared to a mess that keeps getting messier. The ATP singles rankings are currently led by Russian player Daniil Medvedev, while Iga Swiatek is the No. 1 ranked WTA player.

(Image: @wimbledon/Instagram)