The Mutua Madrid Open is traditionally played during the claycourt season ahead of Roland Garros and even though the coronavirus outbreak forced the tournament to be canceled in the original May 1st-10th period, the tennis event in the capital of Spain will be held after all, from September 12th to September 20th, while it may be even possible that spectators will be allowed on site.
The nineteenth edition of the Mutua Madrid Open will be the first combined event to take place in Europe since the suspension of the tour in March caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Right after the Western & Southern Open and US Open duo in NYC, the Madrid tournament is scheduled to start on September 12th with the qualifying phase and continue with the main draw. After Madrid, we have Roland Garros qualifying scheduled the week of September 21st and main draw the following two weeks, concluding on October 11th.
Tournament director Feliciano Lopez is very optimistic about the gradual improvement of the coronavirus situation in Spain and envisages that the Mutua Madrid Open could even welcome spectators:
By going ahead with the tournament, we are sending a positive message from one of the areas worst affected by the virus. We have to thank the city of Madrid and all the sponsors of the tournament for their help, which is key to the staging of the 2020 Mutua Madrid Open. We are confident that the situation will have improved even more in September and that will allow us to have fans in the stands.
