In addition to the constant controversy over the tough measure adopted, the organizers of Wimbledon will have to do without numerous stars. In fact, there will be no surprise return in both the men’s and women’s tournaments.
Roger Federer did not sign up for the London event; an event which, considering the absences of Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev and the injury of Alexander Zverev, should give up three top ten. There will also be illustrious defections in the women’s tournament, considering that Aryna Sabalenka, Victoria Azarenka, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Daria Kasatkina, Veronika Kudermetova, Liudmila Samsonova and Aliaksandra Sasnovich will not participate in the third Major of 2022.
Further bad news also came from the entry list. Serena Williams and her sister Venus, who have won the tournament 12 times together (7 Serena Williams, 5 Venus Williams, ed) will not take the court on the All England Club lawns.
The future of Serena Williams, in particular, is increasingly in doubt. The American champion played her last match at Wimbledon last year, when she was forced to retire 3-3 against Aliaksandra Sasnovich due to an injury to her right leg.
Serena Williams has denied rumors about her retirement, but she has nevertheless specified that she is ready to leave the world of tennis: “I am ready for this day, to be honest I have been for more than a decade. I think it is very important to always have a plan and I always have. In life there is balance and some days are more difficult than others. It’s certainly harder now that I’m a mother and wife, because I want to be able to spend time with my family.”
So Wimbledon 2022 continues to lose pieces, both on and off the court. The ATP and the WTA have decided to punish the organizers of the London Slam, who have chosen to exclude Russian and Belarusian tennis players, and have determined that no points will be awarded.
“The possibility for players of all nationalities to participate in tournaments, based on merit and without discrimination is fundamental for the Tour,” reads the harsh statement issued by the leaders of world tennis.
“The decision that Wimbledon made and which prevents Russians and Belarusians from playing in the United Kingdom undermines our principles and the integrity of the ATP. In the absence of a change in circumstances, it is with great regret and reluctance that we see no other option but to remove the ATP and WTA ranking points from Wimbledon for 2022.”