NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo Says US Open Will Start Aug. 31 as Scheduled Without Fans

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced the 2020 U.S. Open will go forward as scheduled beginning on Aug. 31, but matches will take place without fans:

The USTA subsequently issued a statement:

The tournament will be the first Grand Slam event since tournaments were suspended due to the coronavirus in March. Wimbledon was canceled, while the French Open was postponed.

New York was hit especially hard by the coronavirus, with over 380,000 cases, according to CNN.com. There were 30,856 deaths due to the disease as of Tuesday, more than all but three other countries.

However, the spread has declined as of late, with Cuomo announcing Monday's total hospitalizations were the lowest since March 20. Fatalities related to COVID-19 are also decreasing.

It will help the U.S. Open move forward as scheduled, despite the lack of fans.

"Without having close social contact, we feel if one player gets it, it's not going to spread," USTA president Patrick Galbraith said on June 10, per Christopher Clarey of the New York Times. "Our infectious disease specialists are confident on that. They are going to be pulled out of the environment, but you have to have close contact to get this."

There has been significant criticism from players, however, including Nick Kyrgios, who called organizers "selfish" in a Twitter post.

Rafael Nadal also expressed his concern about safety in early June, while Novak Djokovic said the protocols were "extremely harsh."

Roger Federer will miss the event and the rest of the 2020 season due to a knee injury.