Tennis chiefs pledge roof for rain-lashed Italian Open

Italian govt agency’s official says project to be completed by 2026 after unwanted delays during event

ROME:

The rain-soaked 2023 edition of the Italian Open might soon be a bad memory with plans announced on Sunday to build a roof over the main showcourt at the ForoItalico.

The structure would be completed by 2026, promised officials.

"The roof is coming," said Vito Cozzoli, CEO of the Italian government agency Sport e Salute (Sport and Health).

"This will be a futuristic project that will make the ForoItalico'scentre court usable year round."

Rain played an unwanted role in this year's tournament.

Saturday women's final only began at 11 p.m. and ended just after midnight thanks only to an injury for Anhelina Kalinina which handed the title to Elena Rybakina.

That followed the delayed second men's semi-final between Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas.

Sundays men's final between champion Medvedev and Holger Rune started 90 minutes late.

Italian bureaucracy is likely to play a role in the roof project, however, with building permit approval expected to take from eight to 10 months.

There would then be another year and a half to two years to get the actual construction completed at an historical sporting park dating back nearly a century.

The project would be paused during upcoming editions of the Italian Open.

Plans call for increasing the court capacity from its current 10,000-plus to 12,500 spectators