India has hosted only two ,000 events in Gwalior and in Aurangabad.
Just days after Maharashtra government brought the Chennai Open to Pune, it is now the turn of the WTA event to be played in the state. The WTA tournament which hasn’t been held in the country for five years will now be played in Mumbai which would give the homegrown players a chance of playing with top-50 players in the world. The last time India hosted a WTA event was in 2012 – then under the tag of ‘Royal Indian Open’ – in Pune when Elina Sviotlina had won the title.
“It’s time that our players such as Ankita Raina, Karman Kaur Thandi, Rutuja Bhosale and others get to play at a better level and try to move up the rankings ladder. For the players’ interest we have brought this event to Mumbai,” MSLTA Secretary General Sunder Iyer said to PTI.
As per the tournament officials, there will be four wild cards on offer for the main draw and the qualifiers of the Mumbai Open. The Indian players who are doing well at the time are likely to be rewarded with a wild card. At the moment, barring Ankita Raina (world no 262), can’t get a direct entry in the main draws of WTA 125K events. Karman Kaur Tahndi (349) and Riya Bhatia (519) are behind Raina but don’t make the usual cut for the entry-level WTA tournaments.
“It will be an opportunity for players to get some crucial points ahead of the Australian Open. Also, players who are to return from injuries and niggles, this event will serve their purpose. Players ranked between 11 and 50 will compete and it’s good for our girls to get that exposure,” Iyer said.
India has thus far hosted only two $15,000 events – in Gwalior and in Aurangabad. “I am very much looking forward to the WTA event at home. It will be a great exposure and experience for all of us since it’s quite tough to enter a WTA event. I would like to request AITA to host more of these tournaments,” Ankita Raina said. Thandi said, “It will be great for women’s tennis with that kind of event happening in India.”
This comes at a time when the likes of DLTA (Delhi Lawn Tennis Association) or Chennai Open organisers themselves failed to rope in a sponsor to keep the ATP tournament going. Prashant Sutar, MSLTA Director (Development Committee), said if a proposal is put together with the “right vision”, it’s not difficult to raise money. “We have KPTI as dedicated sponsors for men’s challenger and a dedicated local mill as sponsors for Solapur. We have understood that proposal should be presented in a particular manner to get sponsorship,” Sutar, who will be Tournament Director for both WTA and ATP World event in January, said.
Sutar is hoping that Raina gets an automatic main draw entry while Rutuja remains a strong contender for a wild card considering she’s a local player. “For international players, we will see, during the US Open which players are interested in coming to India. We have the option of offering wild cards to them,” Sutar said.
Thandi expressed joy at the possibility of the tournament being held in India which would help her career in terms of tournaments that she plays in Asia. “With a ranking of 349, I would be in the main draw of 60k and qualifying of 100k and 125k. Having a training base in France, I have to spend two weeks at a time for visa to countries like Japan, China, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and most of Asian countries by skipping training. If India were to host 60k and above tournaments, it will be good financially and I will get time in India for my next tournament visa,” Thandi said.
