The twenty-fourth Qatar ExxonMobil Open men’s tennis tournament begins in a few days. Organized by the Qatar Tennis Federation at Khalifa International Tennis Complex from January 4 to 9, it will feature leading players from around the world.
The ATP 250 event is the first tournament of the new ATP World Tour season, allowing stars to begin in Doha and prepare for the Australian Open, the first Grand Slam. The source gives the Australian Open dates as January 19 to February 1.
The Qatar event attracts highly ranked players every year. This edition is led by world number one Novak Djokovic of Serbia, returning for a second consecutive appearance. In the previous edition he lost in the quarterfinals to Croatia’s Ivo Karlovic, 7–6, 6–7, 4–6.
Djokovic arrives after an outstanding 2015, winning eleven titles, including three Grand Slams: the Australian Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open at Flushing Meadows. The only major he missed was Roland Garros, where he lost to Switzerland’s Stanislas Wawrinka, 6–4, 4–6, 3–6, 4–6.
It was one of Djokovic’s finest seasons, with 82 wins and only six defeats, plus two unprecedented records. First, he won six Masters 1000 events: Indian Wells, Miami, Monte Carlo, Rome, Shanghai, and Paris.
Second, he finished with a record points total of 16,585 after winning the season-ending event for the world’s top eight players in London the previous month, beating Roger Federer 6–4, 6–3 in the final.
Spain’s Rafael Nadal, world number five and former number one, will also participate. This is his eighth appearance in Qatar, where he won the 2014 title by defeating France’s Gaël Monfils 6–1, 6–7, 6–2.
Nadal also reached the final in 2010, the semifinals in 2012 and 2013, and the quarterfinals in 2009 and 2005.
He began 2015 in Doha as defending champion but lost in the first round to Germany’s Michael Berrer by two sets to one. He nevertheless won his fourth Doha doubles title. Nadal won only three singles titles in 2015—Hamburg, Stuttgart, and Buenos Aires—bringing his total to 65, according to the article.
World number six Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic, runner-up in 2015, also returns. He reached the Rome Masters quarterfinals for the fifth time, Cincinnati’s quarterfinals for the fourth time, and the US Open fourth round for a fourth consecutive year. He won two titles in 2015, Stockholm and Shenzhen.
Defending champion David Ferrer of Spain, ranked seventh, returns after beating Berdych 6–4, 7–5 in the 2015 final.
Ferrer began that season with his twenty-second career title in Doha. In February he reached his twenty-seventh career clay-court final and second final of 2015 in Rio de Janeiro.
In October he won his fifth title of the year and twenty-sixth overall. His five 2015 titles were Vienna, Kuala Lumpur, Acapulco, Rio de Janeiro, and Doha.
France’s Richard Gasquet, ranked ninth and the 2013 Qatar champion, officially withdrew from the 2016 edition because of a back injury.
Gasquet had appeared in several editions and won in 2013 by defeating Russia’s Nikolay Davydenko 3–6, 7–6, 6–3 in the final.
He also reached the 2015 quarterfinals before losing to Berdych.
Qatar Tennis Federation president and Asian Tennis Federation chief executive Nasser Al-Khelaifi welcomed the participating stars. “We welcome all the champions in this new edition and expect strong competition among the top seeds to reach the podium and win Qatar’s title at the opening of the ATP season,” he said.
Al-Khelaifi said the tournament matched Masters 1000 events in excitement, media and spectator attention, and participation by top players. Organizers continually sought to maintain its appropriate standard.
Federation secretary general Yousef Al-Obaidli expected intense competition given the leading players involved, particularly from the quarterfinals that would determine the final four.
He said Qatar had attracted top-ranked players since the event’s founding, with competitors keen to participate because it opened the new ATP season.
On preparations, assistant secretary general Tareq Zainal said Khalifa International Tennis Complex was ready. The public village, VIP village, and children’s area had been completed, turning the complex into an engaging, interactive destination during the year’s first week.
The public village would offer enjoyment and excitement for the whole family. A food court stood on the left, with the Qatar Tennis Federation shop and sponsor booths on the right. The children’s area would feature face painting, crafts, activities, and entertaining games.
Zainal said the VIP village allowed guests to mingle with players and other visitors in a luxurious, relaxed setting. Guests could collect the tournament booklet at VIP reception, purchase federation merchandise, meet tennis stars, and take souvenir photographs.
Media committee chairman Mohamed Al-Subaie said the media center would host broadcast and print journalists covering matches and interviewing players, spectators, and officials to provide a complete picture of the event.
The center included reception, a restaurant, a media lounge, computers with internet access, lockers, and other services. It also housed offices for media staff from the Qatar Tennis Federation, ExxonMobil, and the ATP.
Tournament director Karim Alami said Qatar regularly attracted many top players who preferred to start their season in Doha as preparation for the Australian Open.
He said all organizing committees were working to deliver the high standard seen every year and reflect the tournament’s organizational and sporting achievements. Preparations had begun long beforehand.
The event’s annual success created major responsibilities to keep improving, he said, but organizers were confident with unlimited support from the Qatar Olympic Committee and state officials.
Tournament History
The first Qatar men’s open was held in 1993 and attracted major stars from the outset. Germany’s Boris Becker won the inaugural title after defeating Sweden’s Stefan Edberg in the semifinal and Croatia’s Goran Ivanisevic 7–6, 4–6, 7–5 in the final.
Edberg returned in the next two years. In 1994 he beat Dutchman Paul Haarhuis 6–3, 6–2 in the final. In 1995 he defeated Morocco’s Karim Alami, now the tournament director, in the quarterfinals and France’s Henri Leconte in the semifinal, before beating Larsson 7–6, 6–1 for the title.
In 1997, American Jim Courier beat a Dutch player named “Sineho” in the source, Romanian Razvan Sabau, then fifth-ranked Austrian Thomas Muster, and Spain’s Sergi Bruguera in the semifinal. He defeated Britain’s Tim Henman 7–5, 6–7, 6–2 in the final, becoming the only American to win the Qatar men’s open.
Morocco’s Younes El Aynaoui made thirteen appearances in Doha. His successful 2002 season began with the Qatar title, beating Argentina’s Guillermo Cañas 3–6, 6–3, 6–3. He then won in Casablanca and Munich.
Regarding Doha as the first place he won a title, El Aynaoui returned in 2010 for his final professional tournament. He lost to Belgium’s Steve Darcis in the second round and then stopped playing.
France’s Fabrice Santoro reached the 1998 final but lost to Czech Petr Korda. He returned in 1999 and lost in the first round to El Aynaoui.
Santoro won in 2000 against defending champion Rainer Schüttler of Germany. They split the opening two sets before Schüttler retired in the third, giving Santoro the title. The Frenchman continued returning, making nine memorable Doha appearances.
Many leading contemporary players appeared in recent editions as a strong start to their ATP seasons. Roger Federer won in 2005, 2006, and 2011. Nikolay Davydenko won in 2010, defeating Rafael Nadal in the final.
Facts and Figures
The source prints the approximate prize money as “1.54.72 million dollars,” an unclear numerical format. The tournament joined the ATP 250 category in 2009. Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex has hosted many memorable professional matches.
- Most titles: Roger Federer, three, in 2005, 2006, and 2011.
- Consecutive champions: Stefan Edberg in 1994 and 1995, Federer in 2005 and 2006, and Andy Murray in 2008 and 2009.
- Unbeaten in singles appearances: 1997 champion Jim Courier and 2001 champion Marcelo Rios of Chile each entered only once and won five consecutive matches to take the title.
- Oldest champions listed: Younes El Aynaoui, 30, in 2002; Petr Korda, 29, in 1998; Federer, 29, in 2011; and Edberg, 28, in 1995.
- Youngest champions listed: Andy Murray, 20, in 2008 and 21 in 2009; Rainer Schüttler, 22, in 1999; and Federer, 23, in 2005.
- Top eight seeds: Their poorest collective performance came in 1994, when five lost in the first round. In 2011, all eight passed the first round for the first time.
- Top four seeds: All reached the semifinals in 1993 and 2011.
- Top seed as champion: The source records three occasions: Federer in 2005 and 2006, when he was also world number one, and Edberg in 1995, when he was world number seven. In 1999, top seed Tim Henman reached the final but lost to Schüttler.
The top seed’s worst result came in 1994, when Pete Sampras lost in the first round to Moroccan qualifier Karim Alami, making his first tournament appearance. Alami subsequently played in eight editions, achieving his best result with a semifinal appearance in 1999.