Wimbledon had ‘no viable alternative’ but to ban Russian and Belarusian players

Wimbledon’s decision to ban Russian and Belarusian players was as a result of government guidance, officials said (Steven Paston/PA)

The UK Government left Wimbledon with “no viable alternative” but to ban Russian and Belarusian players from this year’s Championships, chairman Ian Hewitt told the All England Club’s spring briefing.

Expanding on last week’s announcement that Wimbledon and the preceding grass-court events would be the first individual tennis tournaments to bar players from the two countries, Hewitt said the club was left with only two options – an outright ban or forcing players to sign declarations condemning the invasion of Ukraine.