12 January 2011
Sampras Joins Zurich Field
The BNP Paribas Zurich Open has announced an all-star line-up for 2011 which will include the 14-time Grand Slam Champion Pete Sampras as well as American legend John McEnroe and defending Champion Stefan Edberg.
Held at the Saalsporthalle from the 8th to the 12th of March, the 2011 Zurich Open will be Sampras' first tournament on European soil since his appearance at the AEGON Masters Tennis in London in 2008.
For McEnroe the tournament will be yet another chance to prove himself against a field of players younger than himself. In 2010, he has already scored notable wins over Guy Forget, Wayne Ferreira and Mats Wilander.
Sampras, 39, is excited about the event, his first on the ATP Champions Tour since the Chengdu Open in October 2010 in which he finished runner-up to Greg Rusedski.
"I am very much looking forward to playing in Zurich and to be back in Switzerland after more than 15 years," he said.
With 30 Grand Slam titles between them the eight men making up the Zurich Open player field are some of the most decorated in tennis history, and they will be joined once again by eight of the world's top junior players as part of the event's unique 'Where Champions Meet Talents' format.
Joining Sampras, McEnroe and Edberg in the Champions' field will be beaten 2010 finalist Goran Ivanisevic, 1991 Wimbledon Champion Michael Stich, the King of Clay Thomas Muster and British favourite Tim Henman, who will be playing his first ATP Champions Tour event outside of the UK.
Headlining the junior field will be the promising British duo of Oliver Golding and Liam Broady as well as ITF No. 1 and 2 Ranked players Jiri Vesely of the Czech Republic and Dominik Thiem of Austria. Alongside them will be Swiss players Dmitri Bretting and Alexander Ritschard, Croatian player Mate Pavic and Sloviakian Filip Horansky.
Once again, The ATP Champions Tour event will follow the usual format, with the eight-man junior tournament being played in parallel. In addition, during the night session on each day of the event, tennisf past and future champions will unite to play side-by-side in a separate doubles tournament where teams formed of one legend and one junior will do battle against one another.
Philippoussis, who won the first ATP Champions Tour event of the year last week in Delray Beach, will try to make it two-in-a-row when he arrives in Switzerland. The Australian will have his work cut out with Pete Sampras, John McEnroe, Ivanisevic, Tim Henman, Thomas Muster, Michael Stich and Henri Leconte making up the opposition.