World's Best Set for Showdown at the 2008 Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships
- Owners and organizers, Dubai Duty Free presents strongest ever line-up in the event's history -
Dubai, UAE, March 1st, 2008: The 16th staging of the Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships features one of the strongest fields in the tournament’s history, with six of the top seven-ranked players in the world competing for one of the most prestigious titles on the ATP Tour.
Roger Federer’s four titles is a record for the event, and he has the advantage of commuting to the stadium from his second home in Dubai. The city is a perfect base for the Swiss superstar to prepare for his pursuit of the record books, and he spends many weeks of the year here perfecting his game before heading off to New York or Wimbledon to chase another Grand Slam title.
“I can really concentrate on tennis here,” Federer said. “I have no distractions, whereas in Switzerland maybe I still have so many friends, families, I want to do things with. I'm maybe not there to really focus on tennis, whereas in Dubai it's totally different. Maybe, as well, if you want to go, have a day off, like an afternoon off, you can even go to the beach, take it easy. It's just a good feeling in Dubai for me to practice.”
One of Federer’s strongest challengers will be Rafael Nadal. Put the Spaniard on clay and he is virtually unbeatable. He can beat all-comers on hard courts too, as his victory over Roger Federer in the 2006 Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships proved. Even on grass he is almost impregnable, with two finals in his last two appearances at Wimbledon.
And yet the Spanish wonderkid is as down-to-earth as it gets. His fame, fortune and three successive titles at Roland Garros - where he has never lost a match - have left him the same shy, polite and unassuming person he has always been. The jigging, all-action, ultra-aggressive competitor on court is far removed from the quiet, humble young man he is when away from the crowds.
“Rafael Nadal sets the stadium alight whenever he steps on the court, and his final against Roger Federer in 2006 was one of the best matches in the history of the tournament,” said Colm McLoughlin, Managing Director of tournament owners and organisers Dubai Duty Free. “He will start again as one of the favourites, but with such strong opposition it will be a test of his character and skill to recapture the title he won here two years ago.”
Both Federer and Nadal will be looking over their shoulder at Novak Djokovic, a world number one in waiting as he demonstrated by beating both those players during 2007. A victory over Nadal in the 2007 Miami quarter-finals was followed by another in the semis of the Masters Series event in Canada, and he also has two wins over the almost unbeatable Swiss, the first coming at that same event in Canada and the next in sensational, straight-sets fashion at the recent Australian Open. That win put him into the final, where he went on to claim his first Grand Slam title with victory over Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.
Andy Roddick and Andy Murray are two players making their Dubai debut this year. Roddick’s proudest moment came at the end of last season when he played a role in winning the Davis Cup for the United States. Murray has made a stunning start to 2008, lifting the title in Doha in January and recently adding Marseille for his fifth career crown.
Young Frenchman Richard Gasquet, who won his first Grand Slam title with Tatiana Golovin shortly after his 18th birthday and last year beat Andy Roddick to reach the Wimbledon semi-finals, will be a popular draw. And the tournament also features two Russians with contrasting success in Dubai.
World number five Nikolay Davydenko has struggled here, despite claiming 11 career titles and reaching three other finals. His best Dubai performance came in 2005 when he reached the quarter-finals before losing a close two-set battle with Andre Agassi. While he is still seeking to make a major impact here, his compatriot Mikhail Youzhny last year brought off one of the biggest upsets in the history of the tournament when he overcame defending champion and world number two Rafael Nadal in straight sets on his way to a final showdown with Roger Federer.
Play at the Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships is held under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.
