The chairman of the All England Club stood by the decision to ban Russian and Belarusian players from Wimbledon, saying there was “no viable alternative.”
Ian Hewitt made the comments during an interview with ESPN on Sunday, on the eve of The Championships. The AEC’s decision in April came in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The decision deprived the likes of world Nos. 1 and 8 men’s players Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev, respectively, as well as world No. 6 women’s player Aryna Sabalenka, among others, from competing in the Grand Slam event.
Hewitt said AEC followed the guidance of the British government, saying it would have been “wrong” to do otherwise….