WHILE the world still battles the 2020 global pandemic that is COVID-19, it might be difficult to imagine an international sport that stretches every continent going ahead. But that is exactly the case for the WTA and ATP Tours that start in the next month. While the ATP Tour kicks off later in August, the WTA Tour starts next week. That is correct, the first WTA Tour tournament recommences next Monday. Or Saturday for the qualifiers.

So what are the WTA Tour events coming up?

The first is in Palermo Italy, with the Palermo Ladies Open taking place a week after when it normally would. The global pandemic has limited it to just Europeans competing the in main draw thus far, but that has not limited the quality, with a number of top 30 players running around hoping to get form given the two Grand Slams to take place in the coming months.

Following Palermo, players head to Prague a week later to compete in another International tournament. Expect the fields to be eerily similar given the concern from players aboard. While the European countries have got a better grasp on the pandemic, the real concern comes later in August when the players converge on New York for multiple weeks. The Western & Southern Open has moved from Cincinnati to the Big Apple so players can be quarantined within a hub ahead of the US Open the following week. The other tournament in the States’ that is a new event in Lexington called the Top Seed Open. It sounds like a good time to roll out another tournament, right in the middle of the pandemic, but at this stage that event will go ahead on August 10 to lead into the major US events.

For those not willing to risk their health to head to the United States, there is a tournament that coincides with the US Open in Istanbul, though with less ranking points and a lot less money on offer, it will make it a tough decision for a lot of competitors. That is the next month, before events back in Europe at Madrid, Rome and Strasbourg before players butter up for the unusual Roland Garros time slot in Paris. The China tour – where four consecutive tournaments are played there in October – is still scheduled to go ahead.

Who is competing where?

As previously mentioned, the Palermo Ladies Open is not short on star quality despite only Europeans opting to go. Given the strength of Europe in the top-end of the WTA Tour world rankings, it is no surprise to see a number of top 30 players running around on the clay. Simona Halep had committed to Palermo and would have been the strong favourite but announced recently that she would withdraw from the event. Marketa Vondrousova, Johanna Konta, Petra Martic and Maria Sakkari are now among the favourites in the draw.

All the seeds are likely to be inside the top 25 with Anett Kontaveit, Elise Mertens and Donna Vekic making it a really strong core group. Throw in Dayana Yastremska, Karolina Muchova and Ekaterina Alexandrova, and there is going to be some serious top-end talent in the draw.

At the Top Seed Open, multiple Grand Slam winner Serena Williams headlines the entry list as she aims to prepare for what could be a record-equalling 24th Grand Slam win in Flushing Meadows later in the month. Alongside her are sister Venus, and another former Grand Slam winner in Victoria Azarenka. The Europeans who are keen to compete in the United States will likely compete in Lexington ahead of the Flushing Meadows slam.

It is no surprise to see the field filled with American players such as Amanda Anisimova, Sloane Stephens and Coco Gauff, but the big surprise was the entry of Aryna Sabalenka who has opted to compete instead of heading to Palermo.