This year's Women's Baseball World Cup has been postponed ©WBSC

This year's World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Women's Baseball World Cup in Mexico has been postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The WBSC decided to delay the tournament, which had been due to take place from September 11 to 20 in Monterrey, following a video conference with its Continental Associations and Local Organising Committees yesterday.

A new date for the 12-team competition has not yet been confirmed.

The WBSC has also postponed the Under-18 Women's Softball World Cup and the Under-15 Baseball World Cup as the spread of the COVID-19 virus continues to wreak havoc on the sporting calendar.

Lima had been set to stage the Under-18 Women's Softball World Cup from August 23 to 30, while the Under-15 Baseball World Cup had been scheduled for August 14 to 23 in Mexico.

"Keeping in mind the latest developments concerning the coronavirus, the WBSC will continue to review possible options over the coming weeks, together with the Local Organising Committees and WBSC Continental Associations, to find new dates for the events later in the year," the WBSC said in a statement.

Baseball and softball competitions are among the dozens of events to have been postponed or cancelled due to the COVID-19 virus ©WBSC
Baseball and softball competitions are among the dozens of events to have been postponed or cancelled due to the COVID-19 virus ©WBSC

The WBSC Under-23 Baseball World Cup and the Baseball5 World Cup – a qualifier for the Youth Olympic Games 2022 – which are set to take place in Mexico at the end of September/beginning of October and December, respectively, are currently due to be held as planned.

Qualifiers for both the Tokyo 2020 baseball competition and World Baseball Classic are among the other major events in the sport to have been postponed because of the virus, which has killed over 43,000 people and infected more than 876,000 worldwide.

Regional bodies in baseball and softball have also postponed or cancelled events due to the spread of COVID-19.

USA Softball this week announced it had cancelled all stops on the "Stand Beside Her" tour, promotional events for the American team which had been due to compete at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games and presented by Major League Baseball.

A decision on the status of the 2020 USA Softball National Championship Finals and the 2020 USA Softball Junior Olympic Cup, beginning in mid-July and set to run through the beginning of September, will be made in June, the organisation added.