15 October 2003

The Al Habtoor Tennis Challenge will remain unaltered, at least in the near future.

"We are happy with the way this tournament has grown and progressed. We want it to stay at this level, at least for the next three years," Khalaf Al Habtoor, chairman of the Al Habtoor Group told Gulf News.

It was Al Habtoor who, some six years back, brought the first ladies tennis competition to the Gulf region.

"When we started, we wanted our girls here to have the chance to perform at a professional level among some of the upcoming players on the Tour," Al Habtoor stated.

"Unfortunately, we could not capitalise on it and have some girls here coming through the ranks and becoming competitive at a higher stage," Al Habtoor conceded. Given this backdrop, Al Habtoor is quite content to have the competition at the level it has presently reached.

"We don't want to go beyond this stage. We're happy with the tournament as it has become one of the more popular events on the Tour.

"For the prizemoney we're paying, we get players who would normally participate in a Grade IV or V WTA Tour competition. So why increase the amount when we get a better field for the same standard of the tournament?" Al Habtoor questioned.

Another reason for not raising the profile of the tournament is due to the fact that Al Habtoor wants to have certain things in place before making the move.

"We've got plans. Three years will give us time to build the infrastructure that would be normally required to have a bigger and better event," Al Habtoor smiled.

All in all, what pleases him most is the reality that this competition is a virtual school for beginners aspiring to be on the main WTA Tour. "These are the future champions. And they start right here at the Al Habtoor Tennis Challenge. And I'm pleased to play such a crucial role for a game I truly like," Al Habtoor added.

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