The International Tennis Federation (ITF), the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) and the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) have put their events on hold amid rising international concern over the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

The ITF's World Tennis Tour, wheelchair and junior events have all been postponed, while the ATP has suspended its competitions, including the Monte Carlo Masters and the Barcelona Open, for six weeks.

In a statement, ATP chairman Andrea Gaudenzi said the decision was not taken lightly but it had been "responsible" to postpone its events.

"The worldwide nature of our sport and the international travel required presents significant risks and challenges in today's circumstances, as do the increasingly restrictive directives issued by local authorities," Gaudenzi added.

"We continue to monitor this on a daily basis and we look forward to the Tour resuming when the situation improves."

The WTA, the last organisation to make an announcement of a postponement, has cancelled events in Miami, Guadalajara, Charleston and Bogota.

A decision about the viability of the European clay-court season, set to begin on April 20, will be made by the WTA "in the week ahead".

Earlier this week, the inaugural Fed Cup finals, scheduled for Budapest next month, were postponed because of the virus outbreak.

The ITF said it was committed to rescheduling the 12-team tournament for later in the year.

The virus, which has so far killed in excess of 5,000 people and infected more than 138,000 worldwide, has caused significant disruption to sport.

Dozens of events across numerous sports, including Olympic qualifiers and World Championships, have been postponed or cancelled, while major leagues have also been suspended.

It comes as Governments bid to curb the spread of the virus by imposing travel restrictions and banning events involving a certain number of participants.