Saturday, Feb 25, 2017

The joie de vivre around the Dubai Tennis Stadium, during this time of the year, is hard to miss if you have been a resident of this vibrant city long enough. The thunderous clapping from the centre court at the end of a well-played point, which often gives way to the strains of guitar and drums of the band playing at the Aviation Club terraces, tells you it’s tennis time again.

While the women’s event which kicked off the two-week extravaganza braved a somewhat fickle weather to hold its own, the ATP event is special one — and tournament owners Dubai Duty Free have spared no efforts to ensure that it’s 25th anniversary is an event to remember. For starters, Andy Murray, the men’s world No. 1 is back in fray after a fairly long gap while the emotional quotient around the comeback of Roger Federer — the tournament’s most enduring brand ambassador — is hard to miss.

If one had been around at last year’s men’s event — which was anti-climactic due to reasons beyond the organisers’ control — then 2017 could be seen as a redemption time of sorts. The first blow to it came when Federer announced his sudden pullout following a freakish knee injury, while the breaking news each day were pullouts induced by injuries, including that of Novak Djokovic, the tournament’s another crowd favourite.

The silver jubilee for the men’s event, then, could not have come at a better time. There is already an air of anticipation with Murray and the Swiss master already in town and making the odd public appearances — be it hitting at the centre court or hitting it off together at the beach with the iconic Burj Khalifa at the backdrop. Providing an ideal supporting cast are last year’s champion Stan Wawrinka, Dubai regular Tomas Berdych and showman Gael Monfils — who comes back after eight seasons.

The essential appeal of the Dubai event, sandwiched between the Australian Open and the hardcourt showpieces Indian Wells and Miami, is more of a feel-good affair which has — to borrow a phrase from the Dubai Duty Free boss Colm McLoughlin — put ‘Dubai in the world sporting map.’ This, however, is not to suggest a dearth of classy competition over the years — as memories of the epic Nadal-Federer final in 2006 or Federer rallying back to beat Berdych three years back still fresh in memory.

The tournament has, time and again, received endorsements from the players’ body ATP, but it had also been fortunate to boast of two of the greatest players of this generation — Federer and Djokovic playing the role of it’s self-appointed ambassadors. The Swiss ace has won it seven times, while Djoko has won it four times — and the extra incentive for the fans this time lies in the fact that it could well be the last opportunity to see the 18-time Slam winner in action in Dubai.

Federer’s open-ended statement after winning the Australian Open has certainly begun the countdown to his announcement of walking into the golden sunset — sooner than later. And the tennis afficionados of the city would be loathe to miss this opportunity to catch him, and the leading men, in action from Monday.

Gautam Bhattacharyya Sports Editor

Gulf News 2017. All rights reserved.