(Reuters) – Wimbledon organizers have bowed to players’ wishes by announcing a later start date from 2015, extending the tennis grass-court season and increasing the gap with the French Open, they said in a statement on Thursday.
The grand slam will be pushed back a week, giving players three weeks to adjust from the slower French Open clay courts.
“The best interests of tennis will be served by allowing the players more time to recuperate and to adjust from the clay of Roland Garros to the grass at Wimbledon,” said Philip Brook, chairman of the All England Club.
“All our research indicates that there is widespread support within the game for extending the gap between the French Open and Wimbledon and, importantly, we think most players will welcome the prospect of a longer grass court season and spending more time on the softer surface of grass.
“In making this change from 2015 we recognize that there will be some important consequences for the overall tennis calendar and enough time needs to be given to allow us all to plan accordingly.”
Players have long complained that the two-week gap between the clay and grass seasons is insufficient.
Wimbledon 2015 will run from June 29 to July 12.
(Writing by Clare Fallon; Editing by Ken Ferris)
