No Bryan Brothers chest bumps: USTA warns players

New York, April 23 (IANS): The United States Tennis Association (USTA) has warned players not to imitate Bryan Brothers signature chest bumps while celebrating when tennis returns to the court in the near future.

This was one of the many suggestions made by the US governing body as a precautionary measure against coronavirus pandemic. Over 2.6 million people have been infected while 1.7 lakh have lost their lives worldwide due to COVID-19.

According to ESPN, several recommendations were made for when the game finally restarts and Bryan Brothers’ chest bumps were also part of the discussions.

“If you do play doubles, avoid all incidental contact, no Bryan Brothers chest bumps and no whispering to each other from a close distance,” the USTA was quoted as saying by ESPN.

Bob and Mike Bryan are one of the most decorated doubles team in the history of the sport as they won 16 Grand Slam titles together.

The world’s sporting calendar is reeling due to coronavirus pandemic and tennis is no different. The season has been put on hold with multiple tournaments being postponed or cancelled.

The second Slam of the year, French Open, has been postponed from May to September while the iconic Wimbledon Championships was cancelled earlier this month in the wake of the ongoing crisis. Wimbledon has only been cancelled twice before since its inception – because of World War I and World War II.