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The Oct. 25-31 Transylvania Open in the Romanian city of
Cluj-Napoca will showcase a host of major champions including
local hope Simona Halep, Garbine Muguruza of Spain and U.S. Open
winner Raducanu.
The tournament will have spectators during the qualifying
matches on the weekend but fans will not be allowed from Monday
as per the government mandate.
"Due to a last moment government decision, we are sadly forced
to host Transylvania Open without any fans," the organisers said
on social media.
"We did our absolute best to be prepared with the safest
possible event in these special circumstances, following all the
rules and the safety procedures, and we were confident in our
ability to deliver it.
"Now we are incredibly sad to not have you, our friends, in the
stands."
Britain's Raducanu, 18, who was born in Canada to a Chinese
mother and a Romanian father, had said she was eagerly waiting
to participate in the tournament and it would be a special
moment for her to play in front of Romanian fans.
Romania has seen an unprecedented surge in COVID-19 fatalities
recently with new daily cases soaring towards 19,000 this week.
Tennis events were mostly played behind closed doors in 2020
during the pandemic but fans have been allowed to return to
stadiums this year.
Tournaments in the United States, including the U.S. Open major,
required fans to bring proof of their COVID-19 vaccination in
order to enter the facilities.
(This story corrects to fix word in headline)
(Reporting by Sudipto Ganguly in Mumbai; editing by Kim Coghill)
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