Hong Kong confirms Olympic medallist Wang Xinyu, Emma Raducanu to play in tennis showpiece
- City also bolsters its presence on international tennis circuit by adding third professional tournament
China’s Olympic silver medallist Wang Xinyu and grand slam winner Emma Raducanu will be among the star names appearing in Hong Kong this year, with a host of top tennis players expected to take part in the city’s tournaments.
Leylah Fernandez has signed up to defend her Prudential Hong Kong Open title, with the WTA 250 tournament set to form part of a Hong Kong Tennis Series (HKTS) launched on Friday.
That series will include the city’s renowned men’s and women’s tournaments along with a new fixture on its sporting calendar, with the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) adding a 125 event – offering 125 ranking points rather than 250.
Andrey Rublev of Russia has agreed to defend his title at the men’s showpiece, when the BOC Hong Kong Tennis Open takes place towards the end of the year.
Raducanu, the 2021 US Open winner from Britain, and Wang, who won mixed doubles silver at the Paris Games alongside Zhang Zhizhen, have signed up for the WTA 250 event.
Wang Xiyu, last year’s Guangzhou Open champion, and Yuan Yue, who won this year’s ATX Open, are among the other Chinese players listed as early entries.
Both Wang Xinyu and Wang Xiyu played last year, when Canada’s Fernandez lit up Victoria Park en route to winning her first tour title in 19 months. October’s tournament offers the possibility of Fernandez meeting Raducanu, who beat her in the US Open final three years ago.
Several Chinese players have already committed to the 125 tournament, including Zhang Shuai, the former Australian and US Open doubles champion, and Wang Qiang.
Michael Cheng, the president of the Hong Kong China Tennis Association, said the new series was an opportunity to “grow the reputation of Hong Kong as a global destination for major international tennis and sporting events”.
The as-yet-unnamed 125 event will take place from September 30 to October 6, with the WTA 250 event to follow in late October.
With the new tournament coinciding with the second week of the China Open, organisers expect the entry list to change right up until the final minute, although they said it would be a high-quality field.
“You’ll see that pretty much every player is a top-100-ranked player,” said Peter Johnston, the HKCTA’s director of international events. “So, this isn’t second level stuff, this is a top-quality field.
“The HKTS enable us to showcase ourselves on the world stage, and also create a vibe around town that the period from September through to the end of January is tennis time.”
Some of Hong Kong’s top players will also get the chance to be involved, with the likes of Tiffany Wu and Maggie Ng in the 125 event, and Eudice Chong and Jody Chong getting the chance to take on Raducanu and others.
“The HKCTA’s commitment to bringing international expertise and leading tournaments to Hong Kong offers our home-grown players invaluable experience and the opportunity to hone their skills against leading professionals,” said Oscar Chow, the chairman of the Hong Kong Open steering committee.
For Cheng, the series represents the first step in developing tennis in the city and he vowed the governing body was “not going to stop there” on its mission to turn Hong Kong into a global tennis destination.
Cheng also pointed to the example of the game in mainland China, where the heavy investment had started to pay dividends in the new generation of men and women making an impact at the elite level.
