Watch free
Don’t forget, you can watch the tennis for free on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday on courts 1, 2, 3. You read that right — you can catch the world’s top players in the early rounds of the tournament, gratis! If you want to be on centre court, it’s only Dh50. While you are there, take a snap of yourself with your ticket or wristband and send it to the tournament’s social media for a chance to win tickets to the finals. There is a draw everyday from Monday until Wednesday. Tag your picture with #WINDubaiTennis and post to Twitter (@DDFTennis), Instagram (DubaiTennisChamps) or Foursquare (Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships); terms and conditions are on the tournament’s Facebook page. Open to over-14s only.
Do brunch
Jumeirah Creekside Hotel’s Nomad brunch on February 22 and March 1 will be tennis-themed, with bubbles and strawberries and an optional picnic brunch so you can take your picnic basket and a blanket and watch the games on outdoors TVs. There’s a mini grass tennis court for kids, an inflatable castle, a balloon bending artist and more. There are nine live cooking stations and several mixology posts. Kids below 12 years dine free, Dh195 (soft beverages), Dh295 (house beverages). Call 04-2308571.
Did you know?
Hany Al Khafief, ITF supervisor: The ITF (International Tennis Federation) is the governing body of tennis worldwide, handling rules, regulations, development, officiating and all other aspects of the game. The ITF organises the Davis and Fed Cups, juniors tournaments for under 18s and seniors tournaments from ages 35-90 and more; Olympics tennis, wheelchair and beach tennis; and most importantly, the four Grand Slams.
The Association of Tennis Professional (ATP) and the Women Tennis Association (WTA) are the governing bodies for all other professional tournaments for men and women respectively, that offer prize money above $100,000 (Dh367,310).
Each organisation has its own set of rules, regulations and procedures and when we are talking about ITF, each and every event has it own books. So, it’s not easy to be a chair umpire and certainly very difficult to be an international certified referee as you need to master the 14+ rule books above.
