London, April 20 : Wimbledon on Wednesday announced to decline entries from Russian and Belarusian players for the Grand Slam tournament as result of invasion of Ukraine. The major tournament is scheduled to begin from July 27. In a statement it said: “In the circumstances of such unjustified and unprecedented military aggression, it would be unacceptable for the Russian regime to derive any benefits from the involvement of Russian or Belarusian players with The Championships. “It is therefore our intention, with deep regret, to decline entries from Russian and Belarusian players to The Championships 2022.” Ian Hewitt, Chairman of the All England Club, said: “We recognise that this is hard on the individuals affected, and it is with sadness that they will suffer for the actions of the leaders of the Russian regime. “We have very carefully considered the alternative measures that might be taken within the UK Government guidance but, given the high profile environment of The Championships, the importance of not allowing sport to be used to promote the Russian regime and our broader concerns for public and player (including family) safety, we do not believe it is viable to proceed on any other basis at The Championships.” The decision will effect a number of highly ranked players, including the world No. 2 Daniil Medvedev, Andrey Rublev and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova from Russia, and former world No. 1 Victoria Azarenka and fourth ranked Aryna Sabalenka from Belarus. However, the players are allowed to compete on the tennis tour under neutral flags.
