Today's Edition
Abu Dhabi (Aletihad)
A star-studded field has been announced for this year’s Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open with 10 of the WTA top 20-ranked players, including Kazakhstan’s Elena Rybakina, Greece’s Maria Sakkari and Czech Republic’s Barbora Krejčíková set to compete at the second instalment of the tournament, which takes place at the International Tennis Centre, Zayed Sports City, on February 3-11.
Hosted in partnership with Mubadala and presented by Abu Dhabi Sports Council, the tournament’s main draw entry list has now been revealed, with the latest names joining British superstar Emma Raducanu, Tunisia’s world No. 6, Ons Jabeur and Brazil’s world No. 11 Haddad Maia, who are already confirmed to be taking part.
Jeļena Ostapenko, Liudmila Samsonova, Daria Kasatkina, Veronika Kudermetova and Caroline Garcia, all ranked in the WTA top 20, will also be gunning for glory in Abu Dhabi, ensuring a highly competitive field for the eagerly awaited WTA 500 event, which was won last year by Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic.
👋 Welcoming @JelenaOstapenk8, Daria Kasatkina, Veronika Kudermetova and @CaroGarcia to the 2024 #MubadalaAbuDhabiOpen line-up!
— Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open (@MubadalaADOpen) January 9, 2024
🔗 for the main draw: https://t.co/cUyp6XPwYQ#MubadalaAbuDhabiOpen #Mubadala #WTA #UAETennis #JelenaOstapenko #DariaKasatkina #VeronikaKudermetova… pic.twitter.com/uIAVNNM0h1
Nigel Gupta, the Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open tournament director, said: “We are delighted to announce such a strong draw for this year’s event, and with 10 of the world’s top 20 players competing, it promises to be a truly special tournament.
“With fantastic talents such as Ons Jabeur, Beatriz Haddad Maia and Emma Raducanu confirmed, there was already a huge sense of excitement ahead of the event.
“This additional list of players undoubtedly adds to the anticipation, with tennis fans in Abu Dhabi and the UAE having the opportunity to watch some of the best players in the world compete for the title in less than one month’s time.”
Steven Simon, the WTA Chief Executive Officer, said: “The field for this year’s Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open is packed full of talent. Abu Dhabi was the perfect location for last year’s inaugural event, which produced some fantastic entertainment both on and off court.
“We are hugely excited about heading back to the UAE and we know tennis fans in the country will create another memorable occasion.”
Currently ranked world No. 3, the highly rated Rybakina claimed the Brisbane International title last weekend, defeating Belarus’ Aryna Sabalenka in straight sets to become the first WTA champion of 2024. She won the first Grand Slam of her career at Wimbledon in 2022.
In case you needed more reasons to get tickets for the #MubadalaAbuDhabiOpen 😌
— Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open (@MubadalaADOpen) October 13, 2023
Get your tickets here: https://t.co/3hsCIgOEYR#UAETennis #InAbuDhabi pic.twitter.com/Oqg7bS0BOt
World No. 8, Sakkari, won a WTA 1000 title at last year’s Guadalajara Open, defeating America’s Caroline Dolehide in the final, while in 2021 she reached the semi-finals of both the French and US Opens, becoming the first Greek female to reach the last four of a Grand Slam tournament.
Also ranked in the WTA top 10 is Krejčíková, who claimed the French Open in 2021. Alongside compatriot Katerina Siniakova, she has secured doubles titles at all four Grand Slams, along with Olympic gold at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. She also won three consecutive mixed doubles titles at the Australian Open in 2019, 2020 and 2021.
Other players confirmed to feature at the 2024 Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open include Poland’s Magda Linette, Romania’s Sorana Cîrstea, Anastasia Potapova, Ukraine’s Anhelina Kalinina and Italy’s Jasmine Paolini.
Six players will be added to the draw through qualifying, while there are three additional wildcard slots available after the first of those was awarded to Raducanu, the 2021 US Open winner.
Player list (world ranking in paranthesis):
3 Elena Rybakina
6 Ons Jabeur
8 Maria Sakkari
10 Barbora Krejčíková
11 Beatriz Haddad Maia
12 Jeļena Ostapenko
14 Liudmila Samsonova
15 Daria Kasatkina
16 Veronika Kudermetova
20 Caroline Garcia
24 Magda Linette
26 Sorana Cîrstea
27 Anastasia Potapova
28 Anhelina Kalinina
30 Jasmine Paolini
31 Emma Navarro
32 Lesia Tsurenko
_ Emma Raducanu (wildcard)
