The annual Mubadala Tennis World in Abu Dhabi is set to begin this week with the top ATP players Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Andrey Rublev, Hyeon Chung and Karen Khachanov.
The exhibition event will also feature a women’s match between Grand Slam champion Maria Sharapova and Ajla Tomljanovic. This will be the third edition of the one-off women’s matches.
Earlier, Daniil Medvedev and Gael Monfils were confirmed to play in the event. However, Medvedev was forced to pull out of the pre-season event after emerging victorious at the Diriyah Cup due to sustaining injuries.
He said:
“I was really looking forward to making my debut in Abu Dhabi, so it is with deep regret that I have had to withdraw through injury.”
Gael Monfils also withdrew from the event citing an injury. Khachanov and Rublev will replace the two players in their second appearance at the event. Khachanov played in the 2018 edition and said:
“I can’t wait to return to the Mubadala World Tennis Championship and to Abu Dhabi after a great experience last year.”
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Khachanov featured in a special match for the third place against Dominic Thiem as Rafael Nadal pulled out due to injury. Rublev made his first appearance in 2017 where he placed fifth in the tournament.
Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic will be the players to watch out for as they will both aim to add a fifth title to their collection. Nadal won the title in 2010, 2011 and two editions in 2016 and had an incredible year as he won his 12th French Open, 4th US Open title and ended the year as world number one for the fifth time. He told Gulf News:
“I have always had a great time and enjoyed every minute at this event.
It is a great way to start the season and getting ready this year for the ATP Cup. In previous years it was my entrance to the new season continuing to other events as well.”
Djokovic will return as the defending champion as he totalled his wins at four by beating Kevin Anderson last year. The world’s best players will be competing against four NextGen stars who have arguably had an incredible year. Stefanos Tsitsipas, currently world no.4 won the ATP Finals this year.
Rublev won the Kremlin Cup this year and Khachanov reached his career-high rank of 8 this year. Chung, currently ranked at 128, is an Australian Open semi-finalist.
According to the rules, the top two players are awarded a bye in their first-round putting them straight to the semi-finals round. On Day 1, Tsitsipas will play against Rublev and Khachanov against Chung. The women’s match will also take place on Day 1. The event is sure to test the players’ preparation ahead of the 2020 season and the first Grand Slam, the Australian Open.
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