'It will recover, it's only a question of when and how many casualties'

Empty grandstands have provided many of the emotive snapshots of sport in the age of Covid-19. On the first Sunday afternoon in October, Enable’s thwarted bid for Arc immortality and another serene victory on Philippe-Chatrier for Rafael Nadal took place not a mile apart, two epoch-definers seen by a smattering of spectators.

The present holds its own fears and tennis will have many for the future, not only in terms of immediate revenue but whether the general state of limbo will have profound implications for grassroots coaches or the racquet stringer on the Challenger Tour.

It is no different in bloodstock, where the actions of breeders, vendors, buyers and all those in between can alter the landscape. A drop in trade of around a quarter through the recent keynote yearling sales has been the first indicator of the knock-on effects of economic decline and the trend is not expected to be arrested any time soon.