Oz Open heroes to liven up DDF tennis
dubai — The new superstars of tennis are set to headline the action at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships when play gets underway in just three weeks from now.
New world No. 1 and Australian Open champion Naomi Osaka and charismatic Stefanos Tsitsipas head star-studded fields, with the women’s line up including former Dubai champions and Australian Open runner-up Petra Kvitova, former world No. 1 Simona Halep and Caroline Wozniacki, and two-time defending champion Elina Svitolina.
The men’s field is led by seven time champion Roger Federer, defending Dubai champion Roberto Bautista Agut and the newest superstar on the world stage, the giantkilling Tsitsipas.
Dubai Duty Free ambassadors Wozniacki and Halep will be determined to improve on their start to the new season. Both former Dubai champions, 2019 saw Wozniacki suffer a second round upset in Auckland and then defeat by Maria Sharapova in the third round of the Australian Open.
Defending women’s champion and also a Dubai Duty Free Ambassador, Elina Svitolina is bidding to become the first player from the WTA Tour to win three consecutive Dubai titles. She also reached the quarterfinals in Melbourne before losing to Osaka.
The second week of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships also promises to serve up a rich feast of spectacular tennis.
Tsitsipas last year became the youngest player in ATP Tour history to beat four top 10 opponents in the same week in Toronto. But that was just a warm-up for the impact he made at the Australian Open where he claimed a stunning win over defending champion Roger Federer and then a hard-fought victory over Dubai champion Roberto Bautista Agut before bowing out to Rafael Nadal in the semi-finals.
“His victory over Roger Federer in Melbourne transformed the 20 year-old from one of the most promising young players on tour to one who most definitely has arrived,” said Colm McLoughlin, Executive Vice Chairman and CEO of Dubai Duty Free.
“There is nothing more exciting than watching a new star come to the fore, and we greatly look forward to seeing if he can repeat his Australian Open success in Dubai.”