By IANS
Bangalore : The Bangalore Open of the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) Tour will offer a total prize of $600,000 as a tier-two tournament, to be held here March 3-9.
“The third tournament of Bangalore Open has been upgraded to tier two from tier three. As a result, the total prize money has been more than tripled to $600,000 from $175,000 given away in the 2006 and 2007 events. It will be the biggest women’s tennis show in South Asia,” Sony Ericsson WTA Tour CEO Larry Scott said late Thursday launching the event formally here.
To be held at Kingfisher Signature stadium of the Karnataka State Lawn Tennis Association (KSLTA), located in the city’s famous Cubbon Park, the championship is expected to attract top 30 ranked players. The winner takes home a whopping $95,500 and 300 ranking points to determine the year-end champion.
“Bangalore Open has raised the profile of women’s professional tennis in the subcontinent, which has a rich tennis tradition. With high quality and top-ranked players participating, we hope the tournament will attract sponsors as well as huge fans,” KSLTA secretary Sundar Raju said.
As part of the Asian circuit, Bangalore Open comes after two other big tournaments in the Gulf – Qatar Open ($2.5 million prize) and Dubai Open ($1.5 million prize) next month.
“The future growth of women’s tennis and Bangalore are powerfully linked. With the event promoted to tier-two, some of the world’s best players will feature in it. Tennis is set for an exponential growth across the country,” Indian tennis legend Vijaya Amritraj, who was present on the launch occasion, told reporters.
Maharashtra Governor and KSLTA president S.M. Krishna said Bangalore had always been the focal point of tennis in India.
“It is apt for Bangalore to host such an event in this part of the world. We will continue to drive this event to greater heights in the years to come,” Krishna, an avid follower of the game, asserted.