Brisbane International canceled for second consecutive year, ATP Cup to be held in Sydney

For the second straight year, the Brisbane International will not be taking place next year while the 2022 ATP Cup will be hosted Sydney after being held at Melbourne Park earlier this year.

Tennis Australia made the announcement, citing the pandemic and vary vaccination protocols as reason for their decision.

“We have worked closely with both the women’s and men’s Tours and would like to particularly thank our government partners across the country who have all been tireless in their efforts to bring the tennis back in 2022,” said Tennis Australia CEO Craig Tiley.

“I know it was sorely missed this year, and we are already planning to have a full program of events across the country in 2023. “It is not news to anyone that the pandemic, closed borders and varying rates of vaccination created a massive challenge for us and led to the changes specifically for the summer.

“It’s why we waited as long as possible to secure optimal conditions for the players and fans in as many locations as we could.”

Prior to the pandemic, Brisbane had been one of the biggest lead-in tournaments to the Australian Open. However, they will once again be missing out on hosting some of the sport's biggest names.

“Brisbane is part of the lead-in tours to the Australian Open and we want to continue to be a part of that,” Brisbane tournament director Mark Handley said earlier this month.

“We’ve been a major venue in hosting international players for 11 years. “Last year we could not get it off the ground, but we are hopeful we can this year and we are hopeful that we can another 11 years leading into the Olympics."