Top tennis stars to fight for Abu Dhabi Open glory

UAE - The stage is set for the opening rounds of the inaugural Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open with the top seeds learning their pathways to potential glory following the official draw event, revealing exciting match-ups for the first ever permanent WTA 500 event to be held in Abu Dhabi. The draw event took place on Saturday night at the Galleria Mall in Al Maryah Island with representatives from Mubadala, Abu Dhabi Sports Council, IMG, WTA and Olympic champion Belinda Bencic all in attendance with the evening providing an exciting opening ahead of the kick off to the new event on the WTA calendar, cel ebrating its 50th anniversary in 2023. The draw was filled with top 20 players and produced some exciting matchups in the singles category. Fifth seed Jelena Ostapenko will take on Danielle Collins at the International Tennis Centre’s Stadium Court on Monday evening as both open their campaign in Abu Dhabi. Following this, on Tuesday sees a battle between two former World No1s - Garbiñe Muguruza and Karolína Plíšková, as they come face to face in the first round. In doubles, Indian icon Sania Mirza will be playing the penultimate tournament of her career in Abu Dhabi before hanging up her boots in the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships later this month. Their mammoth tie will be the highlight of day two which also features Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk’s contest against Romania’s Sorana Cirstea, while fans can also watch Belgium’s Elise Mertens take on Italy’s Martina Trevisan in the other singles’ matches. Top seed and world number 8 Daria Kasatkina received a bye into the last-16 stage and could face a challenging last-eight test in the form of either Collins or Ostapenko. Kasatkina could then see a last-four rematch against fourth-seed Veronika Kudermetova, who she beat at last year’s French Open quarterfinal. In the other half of the draw, Australian Open finalist and reigning Wimbledon champion, Elena Rybakina, seeded third in Abu Dhabi, is another player to receive a bye. She will face a second-round test against the winner of the clash between two-time Grand Slam champion and wildcard Muguruza and Plíškova. Fans will be treated to not one, but two appearances from World No.9 and Olympic champion Belinda Bencic, as she takes to court in both the singles and doubles draw, lining up alongside Mertens in their first-round clash against Poland’s Alicja Rosolska and New Zealand’s Erin Routliffe. On facing a wildcard in the form of Marta Kostyuk or Sorana Cirstea in the second round, Bencic said: “I can’t wait for play to get underway here in Abu Dhabi. It is always exciting to play a new event and this is no exception. I come into the tournament pretty happy with my game and look forward to entertaining the fans in Abu Dhabi and hopefully going a long way in the tournament – it would be very special to be the first name on the trophy.” Vickie Gunnarsson, Director of Tennis at IMG said: “The draw for the singles at the Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open has thrown up some really exciting matchups and we cannot wait for play to finally get underway. There has been a lot of anticipation, with the level of talent on display, and the fact this is a ground-breaking first hosting of the event.” Sunday saw the tournament get underway with the singles qualifying rounds. On a day which attracted many fans, Canada’s Leylah Fernandez beat Kristina Mladenovic in straight sets 6-1, 6-2. Stadium Court also saw another straight set victory, as Shelby Rogers claimed a 6-2, 6-3 win against Vera Znovareva. The event continues the WTA’s 50-year anniversary celebrations with tickets starting at Dh 50 for adults (including premium tickets on Monday and Tuesday), while full tournament packages are available at a 15% saving including hospitality tickets that promise an unparalleled event experience. Additionally, tickets for children under 12 accompanied by premium and regular ticketholders will be free during the first four days. Off the court, there is plenty of entertainment and activities for all to enjoy. Fans can secure the best available seats at the International Tennis Centre in Zayed Sports City by visiting ticketmaster.ae. [3] Y. Putintseva (KAZ) vs N. Abduraimova (UZB) [2] L. Fernandez (CAN) vs K. Zavatska (UKR) OR [12] M. Uchijima (JPN) E. Mertens (BEL) vs M. Trevisan (ITA) [WC] M. Kostyuk (UKR) vs [WC] S. Cirstea (ROU) D. Collins (USA) vs [5] J. Ostapenko (LAT) [5] C. Liu (USA) vs [10] D. Yastremska (UKR) [1] A. Sasnovich OR M. Bjorklund (SWE) vs E. Ruse (ROU) [7] A. Kontaveit (EST) vs S. Zhang (CHN) [WC] T. Babos (HUN) / K. Mladenovic (FRA) vs V. Kudermetova / L. Samsonova [WC] B. Mattek-Sands (USA) / S. Mirza (IND) vs K. Flipkens (BEL) / L. Siegemund (GER) [4] S. Rogers (USA) vs [9] M. Frech (POL) [6] R. Marino (CAN) OR M. Betova vs [WC] L. Stefani (BRA) OR [8] Y. Bonaventure (BEL) Copyright © 2022 Khaleej Times. All Rights Reserved. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (Syndigate.info).

Top tennis stars to fight for Abu Dhabi Open glory

DISCOVER MORE

UAE always feels home: Pakistani cricketer Shadab Khan gets Golden Visa

ACC Men’s Under-16 West Zone Cup: Sethi, Sharma star as UAE records big win over Kuwait

Sheikh Saeed bin Maktoum bin Juma Al Maktoum and Morad enter Padel semis at NAS Sports Tournament

Messi scores 100th Argentina goal in Curacao romp

IPL returns as Mumbai eye sixth title

Five players to watch in the IPL

Renard steps down as Saudi national team coach

IPL 2023: Teams, captains and key players

BP and UAE's ADNOC bid for stake in NewMed Energy

UAE banking sector to remain stable in 2023 – KPMG

UAE approves 24 national initiatives to double re-export industry

Saudi’s fintech sector starts to rival UAE, Egypt as number of firms nearly doubles

Saudi banks likely to remain profitable in 2023 – A&M

Rybakina rallies past Badosa, Potapova upsets Gauff in Miami

Novak Djokovic hails his 'second home' Dubai’s 'champion mentality’

Djokovic has 'no regrets' about missing US events over COVID vaccine status

Alcaraz reclaims world no. 1 ranking, Nadal out of top 10

Medvedev aims to build new streak after falling to Alcaraz

LATEST VIDEO

VIDEO: Why is China's Belt and Road Initiative facing setbacks?

ZAWYA COVERAGE

AI may affect 300mln full-time jobs: Goldman Sachs

Five African cities hold more than 50% of continent's private wealth

UAE approves 24 national initiatives to double re-export industry

Saudi Industrial Investment Group to acquire stake in Danish firm Unibio for $70mln

Russian forces making no headway in Bakhmut, Avdiivka, Ukraine says

With strict targets looming, European aviation races to make green fuel

Zelenskiy invites Xi to visit Ukraine - AP

Canada steps up clean tech investments in budget to compete with US

Hong Kong home prices rise for second straight month in Feb

THE BRI REPORT

China is reshaping the Belt and Road Initiative ahead of a post-pandemic era

DISCOVER MORE

LATEST VIDEO

ZAWYA NEWSLETTERS

ZAWYA COVERAGE