Stephen Gallacher’s defence of the Hero Indian Open will not take place next week after the event became the latest sporting occasion to be postponed due to the coronavirus.

The decision was made following consultation between the Indian Golf Union, the tournament’s co-sanctioning partners – the European Tour and the Asian Tour – and the tournament title sponsor Hero MotoCorp Ltd, after the latest public health travel advisories announced by the Indian government.

All parties are looking into the possibility of rescheduling the tournament at some point later in the year, but there are no definitive plans at this stage.

This week’s Kenya Open had already been postponed due to the outbreak of the virus  while April's Maybank Championship in Malaysia and the Volvo China Open have also been knocked on the head.

The National:

Keith Pelley, Chief Executive of the European Tour said: “In these difficult global circumstances, we fully understand and appreciate the recent restrictions introduced in respect of travel into India. As these new measures now prevent many members of both Tours being able to play in the tournament, everyone involved in the staging of the Hero Indian Open felt it was the correct decision to postpone the tournament.”

The cancellation of the Indian Open means there won’t be a regular European Tour tournament until the very end of April – and even that is not certain in the current climate.