The Madrid Open, which was supposed to hold between the 1st and 10th of May would no longer hold as all professional tennis matches have been postponed till, at least, April 20, but that is under doubt as the world is still struggling to contain the spread of the coronavirus. With over 1.5m cases worldwide, social activities, including sports, are still on hold.

However, fans would still get to enjoy something cool in place of the Madrid Open as the organisers have arranged for a virtual match to hold instead.

The virtual match, called the Mutua Madrid Open Virtual Pro would feature top Tennis stars, many of whom have started expressing their interest. Andy Murray and Angelique Kerber have announced they would be competing in the game.

For Kerber, it is something she is looking forward to, although she recognises how much of a challenge it might be. She said the new virtual game “is a new challenge for us the players, and something that I have never done before.” She added “It’s exciting and a good opportunity to compete from home in a new format. I’m looking forward to participate.”

The game would be similar to other virtual matches that have been taken place in other sports due to the pandemic as players get to compete from their homes.

According to Feliciano Lopez, the director of the Madrid Open, plans for the virtual game has been in place since they announced that the game would no longer hold as scheduled. He then said, “we have organised a tournament for the professional players that is as true to the conventional Mutua Madrid Open as possible, without them having to leave their homes.”

The location in the virtual match would be the Manolo Santana Stadium. Sixteen players would compete, broken into four groups. Winners of the match would get €150,000 and a further €50,000 would go to donations for the pandemic.

Written by: Leon Osamor