WASHINGTON, April 16, 2021 (by Michael Dickens)

On Friday, the WTA released an extended WTA Tour calendar that builds upon the first 27 weeks of the 2021 season and includes the next phase of tournaments – a total of nine weeks – which carries the season following Wimbledon through the US Open.

Two 1000-level events, in Toronto and Cincinnati, have been confirmed, plus one 500 (San Jose, Calif.) and six 250 tournaments (Prague, Lausanne, Budapest, Palermo, Gdynia, Cleveland). In addition, a series of 125 events was also revealed.

Gone from this summer’s calendar are tournaments normally held in Cologne and ‘s-Hertogenbosch, which are expected to return in 2022. Also, the Internationaux de Strausbourg has moved to the week of May 24 in lieu of Roland Garros’ decision to move its fortnight back a week. Among the post-Wimbledon July group of clay-court events in Europe, include the WTA’s return to Poland, in Gdynia. It replaces the Citi Open in Washington, D.C., which was a hard-court event. As a lead up to the US Open, the WTA welcomes an inaugural 250 event in Cleveland, Ohio, the week before the year’s final Grand Slam.

The WTA has expanded the volume of 125 tournaments throughout North America and South America, Europe and Asia in an effort to “provide more job opportunities and playing experience at the 125 level.” Currently, there are upcoming 125 tournaments in Saint-Malo, France (May 3-9), Bol, Croatia (June 8-13), Bastad, Sweden (July 5-11), Belgrade (July 26-August 1), Charleston, S.C. (July 26-Aug. 1), Chicago (August 16-22), and Karlsruhe, Germany (Sept. 6-12).

The WTA has released an extended 2021 WTA Tour calendar outlining the next phase of tournaments this season following Wimbledon through the US Open.

See the full schedule below 👇

— wta (@WTA) April 16, 2021

Steve Simon, WTA Chairman and CEO, said: “We are excited to announce the next series of events on the 2021 Tour calendar, as this season has already proven to be outstanding with the level of tennis we have witnessed thus far.

“We are especially appreciative of the commitment in which all the tournaments and players have put forth in order to operate efficiently and safely during these challenging times.”

Simon also noted that the WTA is “very excited about our WTA 125 initiative as we look to grow the number of playing opportunities for our athletes to support their progression through the sport.”

Click here to see a complete list of current and upcoming 2021 tournaments.