Abu Dhabi: As the Zayed Sports City’s International Tennis Centre prepares to host the Abu Dhabi Wilson Tennis Cup from March 6 to 27, it’s yet another opportunity for budding tennis players to prove their mettle competing against the best in the circuit.
Expecting a record-breaking field of more than 300 tennis players of all ages and abilities, the tournament will have 25 divisions in the Open and Cup categories.
Top athletes
“Juniors in the UAE generally play on a school circuit and they are limited to their age group. In this tournament they can ‘play up’ against adults in order to develop their skills. These top athletes normally play against their coaches for a challenge, and we will see many instances in the tournament where they play doubles with their coaches against other high performance athletes,” said Barry Bremner, general manager of Zayed Sports City.
Inaugurated in 2013, the tournament fills a gap in the competitive tennis calendar as there are limited opportunities. It has seen a significant increase in attendance, growing from 83 players in 2013 to 280 last year. With a cash prize of Dh31,500 and gifts valued at 11,500, the number is set to increase this year. “In terms of the competition, we’re seeing some high quality registrations come through already. Our tennis academy, PSS coaches 21 ITF ranked Juniors and many of them are going to play against the adults. The talent gets better each year as the sport grows in the Emirates,” he said.
“When we created this tournament, one of the objectives was to increase the profile of tennis in the UAE and establish Abu Dhabi and the UAE as a centre for tennis excellence. This goal hinges on the success of tournaments like the Abu Dhabi Wilson Tennis Cup, the Mubadala Community Cup and the Mubadala World Tennis Championship,” he added.
The two previous men’s trophy winners, Peter Wessels, a former ATP number 47 ranked player, and the UAE’s top player Omar Behrouzian, have hopes of meeting again in the final.
At the inaugural event, Wessels won the match 6-1, 7-6 in a thrilling encounter in the 2013 final, only to be ruled out from the 2014 tournament through knee injury.
“It is a great challenge to play against top talents and alongside rising stars,” said Behrouzian. “It is events like this that help strengthen tennis in the UAE.”
