CHENNAI: The organisers of the Maharashtra Open have an important meeting coming up with the state government early next month to decide on the fate of next year's event in Pune. Depending on what the government tells them, they might have no choice but to shelve it for the year.
"We are going to be talking about it with state government officials in the first week of November," a person in the know told The New Indian Express.
"After they tell us the quarantine requirements, whether crowds can be allowed inside the stadium, we will get a better picture." Once the state government conveys that to the organisers, they will in turn pass on that information to the ATP, who will decide the best way forward. The tournament is India's only ATP World Tour event.
Once the ATP takes on board the suggestion of the players, they will arrive at a decision with respect to the conduct of the meet for 2020. As reported by The New Indian Express in July, the organisers are yet to approach any of the players. They want to wait for the talks to get over with the government before putting feelers out to assess if players are interested.
As of this moment, the tournament could either be postponed to a later date in the year or not be held at all. Originally, it was slated to begin on February 1 next year.
Meanwhile, there is going to be a reduction of prize money if the tournament does go ahead. Prize money reductions are directly linked to spectators on site and if the government does give the go-ahead without fans, there could be as much as a 50% reduction in prize money, according to a person familiar with the matter. Taking the 2020 Open as a barometer, prize money could be slashed by roughly $300,000.