Dubai: Indian tennis sensation Sania Mirza is hoping to gear up for the new season by participating in this week's 13th Al Habtoor Tennis Challenge, which gets under way at the Al Habtoor Grand Resort and Spa.
"Usually a lot of players have ended their season, but this is not the case for me. I have been playing continuously since the Commonwealth Games and the Asian Games, so I have hardly had any rest," Mirza said.
"I have had only five days off coming to this one, so for me this year has never ended because I have not really had the chance to switch off," she added.
Top seeds
Mirza, who is currently at 165 on the WTA Rankings, has not even been seeded at this annual tournament that has Germany's Julia Goerges as the top seed, followed by Anastasija Sevastova of Latvia, Sybille Bammer of Austria and Anabel Medina Garrigues of Spain as the next three seeds. The Indian starts her quest for the title when she takes on sixth-seeded Ksenia Pervak of Russia in the opening round match on Tuesday.
"When you enter a tournament you want to win it. I am here to give off my 100 per cent and go on to win it in my first appearance here," Mirza said.
The draw ceremony was held with sponsors' representatives Saif Al Mansouri, Deputy Head of Group Marketing and Branding, Emirates NBD; Mohammad Al Mazroui, Al Habtoor Group, and Mark Abou Diwan, General Manager, AMC, who have been supporting this event from its inception, with the familiar Hani Al Khafief as the ITF Supervisor.
The organisers make it a point to raise the standard of the event each year and have yet again invited international chair umpires Walid Semaan of Lebanon and Iranian's Ali Nili and Ali Katebi.
"It is a privilege for us to back an event like this that has seen so many players coming through and making it to the international stages," said Al Mansouri.
Oldest tournament
"At Al Habtoor we are pursuing the vision set out by our chairman, Khalaf Al Habtoor, since the inception of this oldest women's tennis tournament in the Middle East," said Al Mazroui.
The qualifying rounds have already got under way at the Al Habtoor Grand Beach Resort and Spa and the four qualifiers will be known at the end of the first session today.
The annual event has the sponsorship of Emirates NBD, AMC Advertising, OK and Nadali Furniture, Crystal Gallery, Ghulami Trading, Diamond Lease, Desert Springs, Dubai Sports Channel and John Diversery.
