Madrid Open organizers have apologized to players and fans for the ‘unacceptable decision’ not to allow the women’s doubles finalists to make presentation speeches.
Victoria Azarenka and Beatriz Haddad Maia beat Americans Jessica Pegula and Coco Gauff 6-1 6-4 on Sunday.
All of the men’s singles and doubles finalists addressed the crowd after their matches.
The organizers say they have apologized directly to the four players involved.
Tournament General Manager Gerard Tsobanian said: “We sincerely apologize to all the players and fans who expect more from the Mutua Madrid Open tournament.
“Not giving our women’s doubles finalists the chance to address their fans at the end of the match was unacceptable and we apologized directly to Victoria, Beatriz, Coco and Jessica.
“We are working internally and with the WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) to review our protocols and are committed to improving our process in the future. We made a mistake and it will never happen again.”
Organizers initially said they would “not comment on this” when contacted by BBC Sport earlier this week.
Pegula said the decision was ‘disappointing’ and wondered ‘what century everyone lives in’, while Azarenka, from Belarus, said it was ‘difficult to explain’ to her young son Leo why she couldn’t address him in a victory speech.
The Professional Tennis Players Association said the players had been denied “the right to free speech”.
The WTA, the governing body of the women’s tour, had no comment.
The incident has prompted fresh accusations of sexism at the clay-court tournament, after criticism over ball girls’ outfits and the difference in size of birthday cakes presented to men’s champion Carlos Alcaraz and women’s champion Aryna Sabalenka .
