“Shouldn’t have punished players with no points” – Fans startled after ATP imposes fine on LTA following ban on Russian players from playing in the UK
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Daniil Medvedev, Andrey Rublev and other Russian players were banned from Wimbledon due to which ATP imposed a fine on LTA - FirstSportz
It was quite a massive decision by ATP to impose a fine on UK’s Lawn Tennis Association after they prohibited the Russian and Belarusian players from playing during the grass-court season. LTA’s decision came as a consequence of the war situation between Russia and Ukraine and was backed by the British government to continue with the ban.
ATP slapped a fine of $1 million since they did not approve of the decision. As a result, the men’s tennis federation scrapped any ranking points during Wimbledon Championship which proved to be a major setback for players participating in the prestigious Grand Slam. Along with the ban, ATP has threatened the UK’s tennis body with a possible membership cancellation if they still do not allow players in 2023.
LTA issued an official statement to express their disappointment with the fine and the financial setback they would be facing in the future. They slammed the ATP for showing less empathy towards the situation in Ukraine but however admitted that they had intentions of hosting tournaments for lower-ranked players which might not happen after the fine. The tennis governing body went on to state that they are waiting for the outcome of their appeal.
The men’s tennis association body charged a fine on LTA of about $200k for every tournament staged on the men’s Tour and Challenger level over the summer that did not allow players of both countries. Not only ATP, but WTA had also fined them with a $750,000 penalty in July on account of the same reasons.
Twitter reacts after ATP imposed the ban on LTA for prohibiting Russian players from the grass court season
As soon as the news broke out about the fine imposed on UK’s tennis federation, people on social media appreciated ATP for their decision and appreciated them for taking a stand for the players. People condemned the fact that players had to bear the brunt of the war. They even pointed out the fact that the stance of not awarding ranking points in Wimbledon proved costly for the winner of the 2022 Wimbledon Championship, Novak Djokovic. He could not gather the much crucial 2k points that would have better his rankings at the end of the year.
Sharing from the wide spectrum of online reactions, here’s what some of the fans have to say:
Following the ban on players of both countries, it has even resulted in their absence from the Davis Cup and the upcoming United Cup. Apart from tennis, Team Russia was disqualified from the 2022 FIFA World Cup as a result of the war.
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Prateek Pradhan
(601 Articles Published)