World No. 7 Eugenie Bouchard has been granted a wildcard for the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, which will now feature nine of tennis’ top 10 women.
Bouchard, 20, reached the quarter-finals of the Australian Open last month as she continues to build on a sensational breakthrough season in 2014 that included a run all the way to the Wimbledon final.
That made her the first Canadian, male or female, to reach a Grand Slam final, and the first to be ranked inside the world’s top five.
“We are thrilled that Eugenie Bouchard has accepted a wild card into the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships,” said Colm McLoughlin, executive vice chairman of Dubai Duty Free, the tournament owners and organisers.
“She has risen very swiftly to the top of the game and draws huge crowds wherever she competes, even generating her own Genie’s Army of enthusiastic supporters. Her participation here will make competition for the title stronger than ever and it is impossible to predict who will emerge at the end of the week as the winner.”
Tournament director Salah Tahlak added, “With nine of the top 10 and 18 of the top 20 competing for the coveted trophy, tennis fans are set for an unprecedented week of spectacular competition. With so many accomplished champions taking part, every one of them is capable of winning the event but there can be only one prize winner.”
Other wildcards have been awarded to Italian Flavia Pennetta, who last year beat former champion and world No. 3 Agnieszka Radwanska to reach the quarter-finals, and Australian Casey Dellacqua. Slovak Daniela Hantuchova was handed the fourth wildcard, while the fifth and final one went to Turkey’s Cagla Buyukakcay.
Play in the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships begins with the WTA qualifying event which begins on February 13.
The main draw runs from February 15-21 and as well as Bouchard will feature US and Australian Open champion and world No. 1 Serena Williams, French Open and WTA Finals runner-up Simona Halep, Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova, defending Dubai champion Venus Williams, Caroline Wozniacki, Agnieszka Radwanska, Ana Ivanovic, Ekaterina Makarova and Angelique Kerber.
