US Open set for potential U-turn on playing behind closed doors: "As we’ve gone forward, I’ve come around to recognising what an achievement it would be to play"

The US Open has been a tournament who's organisers said would be 'highly unlikely' to be staged if there were no spectators but they are now considering holding this event without fans as many wonder whether tennis will be possible this year.

New York has been heavily impacted by COVID-19 so even if restrictions do get lifted, like other countries social distancing measures will stay which means that even at this point, a tournament with fans looks unlikely.

USTA executive Lew Sherr as a result says he still want it to go ahead and is coming round to the idea of having it with no fans.

“Two months ago, it just didn’t feel like you could [have] a no-fan scenario and have it be what we think of as the U.S. Open,” Sherr told Sportsbusiness Journal.

“As we’ve gone forward, I’ve come around to recognising what an achievement it would be to play… we have 850,000 fans who attend, but we’ve got hundreds of millions of fans who still watch the Open around the world and will never step foot on the grounds.”

“But it will require adjustments,” Sherr added. “It’s a different event. It would be broadcast differently, it would be consumed differently, it’s not just playing the U.S. Open, as you know it, with empty seats.”