Players bemoan lack of ranking points at Wimbledon

PARIS : Players were disappointed about the absence of ranking points at Wimbledon this year but had grudgingly accepted the governing bodies' decision, Tunisia's world number six Ons Jabeur said on Sunday.

The world's most prestigious tennis tournament was stripped of its ranking points by the ATP and WTA Tours over its decision to exclude players from Russia and Belarus due to Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

Rankings determine a player's ability to enter tennis events and receive seedings, and the absence of them will reduce Wimbledon to an exhibition tournament.

"It's a very difficult decision; we've been talking a lot with the WTA. I wish they can find a solution but I don't think anything will change with the no points," Jabeur told reporters after exiting the French Open in a shock opening-round loss.

"Obviously a lot of players are disappointed."

This year's Wimbledon will be the first time players have been excluded on grounds of nationality since the immediate post-World War Two era when German and Japanese players were banned.

Tennis governing bodies have themselves banned Russia and Belarus from international team competitions following the invasion, which Moscow calls a 'special operation', but have allowed players from the two countries to compete as neutrals.

The Wimbledon move has been condemned by tennis governing bodies as discriminatory and their sanction on the grasscourt Grand Slam will mean that players will be unable to defend the points they earned in the 2021 championships.

"I wish we had points... because it's not fair if we drop all the points without us defending anything, especially some people had finals, semi-finals," Jabeur said.

Wimbledon's decision has been criticised by top players such as 21-times