The games at the 2020 French Open were played in front of a maximum capacity of 1,000 fans
The French Open has been postponed for a week in the hope that more spectators can participate.
The Grand Slam tournament at Roland Garros will now take place from May 30th to June 13th and will be qualified the week before.
France is in a third nationwide lockdown amid a surge in coronavirus cases that President Emmanuel Macron previously expected in mid-May.
The French Tennis Federation (FFT) said the postponement was the “best solution”.
“I am very pleased that the discussions with the authorities, the governing bodies of international tennis, our partners and broadcasters as well as the ongoing work with the WTA and ATP have enabled us to postpone the Roland Garros tournament by one week in 2021”, Said FFT President Gilles Moretton.
“It will give the health situation more time to improve and should optimize our chances of welcoming spectators to Roland Garros in our newly remodeled stadium which is now over 30 acres.
“For the fans, the players and the atmosphere, the presence of spectators is crucial for our tournament, the most important international sporting event of spring.”
In 2020, the French Open was postponed to autumn due to the pandemic.
Rafael Nadal won the men’s singles title – his 13th at Roland Garros – while Polish teen Iga Swiatek won her first Grand Slam title in front of 1,000 fans, which was the maximum allowable at the time.
The 2021 tournament is now expected to end just two weeks before the start of Wimbledon.
The shift is expected to affect the ATP and WTA calendars. The grass season is due to start on June 7th with tournaments in s’Hertogenbosch, Stuttgart and Nottingham.
The ATP and WTA governing bodies said in a joint statement that they would “work in consultation with all parties affected by the postponement”.
The UK tennis association LTA said: “The decision to relocate Roland Garros will obviously have a knock-on effect for the summer grass court season. We are currently examining the effects on our events and whether we need to make changes to our calendar.”
