Hong Kong Tennis Open: Azarenka, Russian pair to feature as tournament returns to city for first time in 5 years
- Victoria Azarenka of Belarus and Russians Anastasia Potapova and Mirra Andreeva are among the main draw
- ‘Everyone should have an equal chance to participate. They are not coming to promote political messages,’ Hong Kong tennis boss Philip Mok says
Five years after Ukrainian Dayan Yastremska won the Hong Kong Open the tournament returns to the city for the first time next month, headlined by players from Russia and Belarus.
Victoria Azarenka of Belarus and the Russian pair of Anastasia Potapova and Mirra Andreeva are among the main draw, alongside China’s Wang Xiyu, Beatriz Haddad Maia of Brazil and 21-year-old Canadian Leylah Fernandez.
Players from both nations were banned from playing at Wimbledon last year, and a number of WTA matches have been overshadowed by the refusal of the likes of Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina to shake hands with opponents from Russia and Belarus because of the continuing war in the region.
In a video message, two-time Australian Open champion Azarenka said she was “thrilled and excited” to be coming to Hong Kong. Local players Eudice Chong and Cody Wong will also take part.
And while officials said they were “not aware” of any Ukrainian players entering the Open, which runs from October 7th to 15th, tournament director Chris Lai said politics had played no part in who was invited.
“We focus mainly on the quality of the players, rather than political reasons [when choosing field],” he said.
“[Nationality] wasn’t really a consideration for us. Wimbledon had that stance [banning Russian and Belarussian players] last year and reversed it, which I thought was a sensible decision.
“It is more on the Ukrainian side that they won’t shake hands. I guess, in terms of sport … tennis, you should always shake hands at the end of the match and that is what we expect from the players.”
Philip Mok, president of the city’s Tennis Association, said sponsors had not been asked for their input, and as tennis was a global sport “everyone should have an equal chance to participate”.
“They [players] are not coming to promote political messages - everyone is coming as athletes and competing on an equal playing field,” he said. “I am not at all concerned about the prospect of a Russian or Belarussian winning the event.”
Next month’s tournament comes in the middle of the WTA’s return to China as a whole following Covid and a 16-month boycott as a result of the situation surrounding Peng Shuai, the Chinese player who made, then withdrew, sexual assault accusations against a senior government official.
Mok, who said he would confirm the remainder of the Hong Kong Open field over the next fortnight, added that while his organisation had not really had a stance on the ban, officials had been “very happy a resolution was reached between all parties. Lifting the ban was definitely the right thing”.
The city will stage a men’s ATP event in January, and Lai welcomed the return of “two mega tennis events”, saying being without any tournament since 2018 had been “a big loss to the Hong Kong community and the players”.
“We have local players who are very competitive and will have a chance to play at this level, because we can provide wild cards, and it is a big part of their development,” Lai said.
The Hong Kong Open claimed the title of WTA tournament of the year in 2018 but has been off the calendar as a result of the 2019 political unrest, followed by the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021 and, finally, the WTA Chinese boycott.
“This is a big deal for Hong Kong,” Mok said. “Hong Kong and China has taken longer than most to recover from Covid, whether in economy or sports or retail.
“The sports industry needs to play a role in reviving Hong Kong … this is a great vehicle to show Hong Kong is back to normal, to attract tourists and revive people’s interests in going to events and spending.”
Mok said organisers were optimistic over soon “upgrading” the Hong Kong Open from WTA-250 level to a higher-ranking WTA-500 event.
