BY ARMSTRONG VAS
Doha: Defending champion Simona Halep along with top seed Petra Kvitova have received first round byes at the Qatar Total Open, it was announced here yesterday.
Two other seeds, Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland and Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark, have also been given byes at the $731,000 tournament.
Halep, the world no.4, who defeated Angelique Kerber of Germany to win the last year edition in Doha, will begin the Qatar campaign against the winner of the first round match between Alize Cornet of France and a qualifier.
The Romanian will defend her Doha title in good spirits as she defeated Karolina Pliskova to win the Dubai Open yesterday, the tenth title of her career.
Halep has a potential matchup against Kerber, in the quarter-finals, if both of them win their respective matches.
Kerber, the world no.12 and one of the eight seeds of the championship, will take on Victoria Azarenka in the first round match.
The German will be seeking to reverse a small part of the 2012 record when she lost all the three matches against Belarussian, the only time the two have met on the Tour and at the Olympics.
“I do not remember the last time I met Victoria,” said the 27- year-old, one of the two players who was present for the draw ceremony held here yesterday.
“It is nice to be back in Doha. I love coming and playing here,” she added.
The match against Azarenka will be a tough one she said.
“I am looking forward to the match. It will be a keenly contested match, as all matches are at this level,” she added, about her opponent, who has two Grand Slams titles under her belt.
With two back to back titles in 2012 and 2013 Azarenka returns to the city where she has gained so much success.
The 25-year-old, bogged by numerous injuries, could not make to Qatar last year but appears to have well and truly over came her injuries having put in a quality performance at the recent Australian Open.
She reached the fourth round at the first Grand Slam of the year with classy wins over Sloane Stephens, Wozniacki and Barbora Zhalavova Strycova before being beaten by Dominkia Cibulkova.
Azarenka is one of the three players who have been given wild cards by the organisers.
World no.8 Wozniacki and Ons Jabeur of Tunisia are the other two. The Dane will take on the winner of the first round match between Sam Stosur of Australia and Lucie Safarova of Czech Republic.
The Australian, US Open winner in 2011 and currently ranked 20, will make her fifth appearance in Doha. Her best appearance was in 2012 where she was a beaten finalist to Azarenka.
The other wildcard in the main draw, Jabeur, aged 20 and ranked 128 in the world has shown a remarkable improvement from a player who had a large amount of success as a junior where she won the girls singles title at the 2011 French Open after being a finalist the previous year.
She won three rounds in qualifying at 2015 Australian Open before falling to former world no.2 Vera Zvonareva in the main draw. She also qualified at the 2014 US Open and made the second round eventually losing to 18th seed Andrea Petkovic in three sets. Jabeur will face World no.33 Zarina Diyas of Kazakhstan in the first round.
The six-day event, which begins tomorrow at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex will be contested by five players ranked in the top 10 and 14 in the top 20 as well as four current and former Grand Slam winners.
Seven-time Grand Slam winner Venus Williams is one of them. She will take on Casey Dellacqua of Australia in the first round, with Halep as a likely semi-final opponent.
Venus will have to tackle another Grand Slam winner Svetlana Kuznestova in the second round, if the Russian wins her first round match against Flavia Pennetta of Italy.
Former world no.1 Jelena Jankovic of Serbia, is one of the several top names who will vie for top honours. THE PENINSULA
