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Organisers of the Capitala World Tennis Championship today announced a stunning line-up of action on day one of the award-winning event following the unveiling of the official player draw.
French star Jo-Wilfried Tsonga will take on the Russian dynamo Nikolay Davydenko while Robin Söderling and Stanislas Wawrinka will complete a spectacular opening day of tennis at the Abu Dhabi International Tennis Complex.
The winner of the Tsonga and Davydenko clash will advance through to play world number two Rafael Nadal while world number one Roger Federer will be ready and waiting for either Söderling or Wawrinka.
The draw provides some interesting scenarios, in particular a possible re-match of the French Open final should Federer and Söderling meet each other on day two of the showpiece tournament. Federer has a good track record against Söderling, having knocked him out of Wimbledon and the US Open this year but Abu Dhabi is fresh territory for the Swede who will be looking for revenge.
Nadal will also be relishing the possibility of meeting Davydenko again, the man he lost to in the final of the Shanghai Masters in October. The Russian powerhouse will firstly need to get past Tsonga if he is to have another shot at the stylish Spaniard.
Davydenko will go into the clash with Tsonga filled with confidence after winning the last two encounters against him. They last met in round-robin play at 2008 Tennis Master’s Cup in Shanghai, which Davydenko won 6-7, 6-4, 7-6.
Federer, meanwhile, will be conscious of the possibility he will meet his good friend and countryman Wawrinka, the talented young star he lost to in the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters earlier this year. Wawrinka would love nothing more than to advance through to day two and take on the world’s best player again in an all Swiss semi-final.
Wawrinka will like his chances against Söderling considering the series is tied 1-1. The two last met in the second round of the 2008 Sony Ericsson Open in Miami, and it was Söderling who eventually came out on top 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.
The confirmation of the player draw will add an even greater sense of anticipation for tennis fans across the region who will welcome the world’s leading players to Abu Dhabi for a second time following the huge success of the inaugural event.
Four of the six who are confirmed for Abu Dhabi have also been playing at the ATP World Tour Finals this week, which has already seen a surprise result in Söderling’s defeat of world number two Nadal, beating him 6-4 6-4 on Sunday.
John Lickrish, Managing Director of Flash Entertainment, said:
“With such a fantastic line up of the world’s top players there was never any doubt that whichever way the player draw went we would see some thrilling tennis at the Capitala World Tennis Championship. The players loved the event last year and that was reflected in the quality tennis that was played and the atmosphere that was generated in the stadium.
“There is no doubt that the three days are going to provide some fantastic tennis and following the draw the sense of excitement will be even greater.”
The Capitala World Tennis Championship takes place from 31 December, 2009 – 2 January, 2010 at the Abu Dhabi International Tennis Complex at Zayed Sports City.
Tickets can be purchased through www.boxofficeme.com or for further information visit www.capitalawtc.com
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