Tennis chiefs to lobby government after 'frustrating' closedown for the sport

The governing body said it was 'incredibly disappointing and frustrating' that tennis was among sports which had now been banned again under the new national lockdown - and vowed to campaign to help tennis players everywhere.

The LTA said in a statement: "Following the Prime Minister’s announcement on 4 January of new national lockdown restrictions to be introduced across England, the LTA can confirm that regrettably all indoor and outdoor tennis facilities will need to close.

"The LTA believes tennis is a naturally socially distanced sport that is safe to play and gives people of all ages the opportunity to exercise with friends or relatives. Tennis is important for people’s physical and mental health and we will continue to liaise with the Government to ask them to allow players back on court as soon as possible.

"We know that this is incredibly disappointing and frustrating news for all those players, coaches, venues and officials involved with the sport, as well as presenting further significant financial challenges. Further information on current financial support available from Government is available here, and the LTA will also continue to engage with Government to help ensure that the tennis community is supported through the coming weeks and months.

"The Government has confirmed that elite sport is able to continue in line with the strict protocols and measures that are in place for it.

"Organised outdoor sport for disabled people is also allowed to continue, and we will provide further detail here on this once we have information from Government.

"The Government has advised that this guidance should be followed immediately, and will be updating the law to reflect the new rules."