It is understood that the Middle East will be the centrepiece of professional tennis throughout January with two key tournaments set to take place in the region.
Dubai newspaper The Gulf News confirmed on Sunday that plans are underway for Abu Dhabi to hold a WTA 500 tournament during the week commencing January 5th. Recently the WTA changed the names of their tournaments to align with that of the men’s Tour. Although both the prize money and ranking points will differ.
At present it is planned for the women’s event to be held at the International Tennis Complex of Zayed Sports City. The Same venue that hosts the Mubadala World Tennis Championship each year.
During the same week as the WTA tournament, Dubai has been chosen as the venue for the Australian Open qualifying tournament following recent speculation. Qualifying for the Grand Slam has been moved to another country for the first time due to the COVID-19 pandemic and quarantine restrictions. It is set to be held at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium from January 9 to 13.
In documentation recently seen by UbiTennis, those who qualify for Australia will be able to travel to the country via transport that will be provided by Tennis Australia. Meanwhile, those who lose in qualification will be eligible to claim back the costs of applying for a visa. When qualifiers arrive they will then undertake the mandatory 15-day quarantine period.
The 2021 tennis calendar has been thrown into chaos due to the ongoing pandemic with events in Auckland and China being scrapped. Tennis Australia had hoped to welcome players to the country this month but their plan was denied by government officials. Resulting in a complete rescheduling on the calendar with the Australian Open getting postponed until February 8th.
“There are quite a few top tennis players who have chosen Dubai for their off-season preparations, and these players will join the qualifiers in special charter flights heading to Melbourne,” one unnamed official told Gulf News.
It is understood that neither of those events will be opened to the public.
In a separate development for the ATP Tour, it has emerged that Delray Beach in America will hold an event during the first week of January. A month earlier than their usual slot. Details of the change started to emerge on Friday when the official Twitter account of the tournament published a tweet which has since been deleted. Presumably because it was published earlier that it should have been. It is rumoured that as well as Delray Beach, the ATP will allow for another 250 event to be held during the same week in Europe or West Asia.
It is believed that a clearer picture will emerge within the next week with official announcements. A series of virtual meetings with players, coaches and tournament officials will take place from Sunday onwards.
The possible schedule:-
- ATP Delray Beach Open – January 4-10
- ATP 250 event (location TBC) – January 4-10
- WTA 500 Abu Dubai – January 5 to 13
- Australian Open qualifying in Dubai – January 9 to 13
