Spain's tennis events shutting doors to the public due to coronavirus

The Spanish tennis federation is asking its clubs and events to comply with government restrictions imposed to combat the spread of coronavirus in the country.

Spain now has more than 2,000 cases, double from the beginning of the week. All sporting events have shut their doors to spectators under orders from the government.

"In accordance with the preventive measures adopted by the Government of Spain," said the federation in a statement, it is asking that there be no spectators attending tennis events in the country "until further notice."

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The move will likely affect a trio of upcoming ATP Challenger events in the country, starting with the Marbella Challenger in three weeks. A challenger event in Madrid, scheduled for the week before, had already been postponed.

The ATP 500 event in Barcelona, where Rafael Nadal is entered to play, is more than six weeks away. It would be similarly affected if the measures are not lifted before then, as would the ATP and WTA Madrid Masters that is scheduled a further two weeks into the clay-court season.

Meanwhile, the Rolex Monte Carlo Masters, which is set to begin April 13, put out a statement to say that it will comply with the authorities' provisions in light of the coronavirus outbreak.

“Following the provisions of the Monegasque and French authorities of Monday March 9 concerning the organization of the next sporting events, the Direction of the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters wishes to assure the public that everything is done to adopt the best solutions in the face of the epidemic from Covid-19," the management said.

"If the tournament were to take place behind closed doors, the Management confirms to its spectators that all tickets purchased will be refunded to them according to a procedure which will be specified later."