Tennis News

ZHUHAI, China – Not until July 24, the 100-day countdown for the 2016 WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai, did I realize it had been more than eight months since I covered the inaugural edition of the WTA season finale.

Evidently, though, my fond memories of this amazing tournament are as fresh as yesterday.

Despite the lack of tennis tradition in the southern coastal city, the young yet vibrant face of the tournament held in Zhuhai’s Hengqin district intrigued me from the very first moment I stepped out of the shuttle bus after arriving at the Hengqin International Tennis Center.

The 5,000-seat stadium court caught my eye for its spectacular design and then made my jaw-drop in astonishment as I learned it was built in just eight months.

Strolling around the state-of-the-art tennis center, details like replicas of Raphael’s oil paintings hanging from the pillars and the considerate set of screens located around the giant entrance could not fail to impress each and every visitor.

And for a journalist, who came to work rather than purely enjoying the game, there is no better treatment than having a supportive and approachable media operation team.

What catered to me even better was that the team was formed by a group of acquaintances of mine.

Peter Johnston, the former WTA managing director for Asia-Pacific, chaired an energetic team, which previously served the Shanghai Rolex Masters, as the director of the young tournament.

In the modern era of professional tennis, where young stars emerge overnight, the lack of history can sometimes be a positive, helping establish something new and unique without any strings. Such a scenario transpired in Zhuhai.

“I think we’ve done an amazing job to run a great tournament with a unique personality of a comfortable, classy and contemporary taste,” Johnston told me.

“The tournament is stepping up to promote the name and personality of Zhuhai around the world. You need events that will attract attention from outside where you want to make an impact and this tournament just offered that.”

And that notion fitted exactly into the bigger picture the organizers and city governors ambitiously expected hoped to paint when they won the bid to host the event through 2019.

Zhuhai, a lively coastal city which boasts proximity to Macao and Hong Kong, is striving to enhance its international profile, forging a vibrant image by staging major sports and cultural events.

Having already appeared on the global stage as the host of a grand aviation show and an international circus festival for years, Zhuhai looks set to diversify on that legacy and the Elite Trophy tournament offered a unique opportunity.

“The city will continue to improve its international profile and the quality of cultural life for its residents by introducing more sports and entertainment events,” said Long Guangyan, the deputy mayor. “That’s our goal to enhance the city’s soft power on par with its economic strength.”

And for the event’s sake, it was the players and the audience that it had to please. Obviously, Zhuhai did a good job.

As the last mandatory event on the WTA calendar, Zhuhai attracted 12 high-ranking singles stars and six elite doubles pairs to compete in round-robin groups followed by a knockout phase. The top-level performances and cutting-edge facilities offered the local audience a taste of Grand Slam atmosphere on their doorstep.

Before the kick-off, the organizers also hosted a poolside welcome party for all the players, where they dressed up in banquet suits and enjoyed fine wines as well as live music on roof of the five-star Sheraton hotel.

And it was a welcome which the players were full of praise for.

“It was another beautiful job, and a nice surprise with the violinist,” seven-time major champion and the eventual tournament winner Venus Williams said of the party. “The enthusiasm for the tournament you can see in the whole city, from the preparation to how everything is set up. It makes the players feel very welcome and appreciated.”

Former World No.1 Jelena Jankovic of Serbia said Zhuhai presented a fitting season finale. “The organization has done a tremendous job. The stadium is so beautiful. The courts and our hotel, everything; I’m really impressed. All of the players are more than satisfied to be here,” said the veteran who was eliminated in the group stage.

Danish former No 1 Caroline Wozniacki also said the compact layout in Zhuhai suited her well, “The fact that everything is close — the players’ lounge, the players dining area, the centre court — is nice, and I like that. We couldn’t ask for anything more.”

Chung Mezle, executive director of Huafa Cultural Tourism Industry Development Co., the tournament’s managing company, said: “We just wanted the players to feel comfortable and inspired to play at their best by providing them the best possible facilities, beautiful environment, and warm service.”

It seems everyone is happy.

And for me, I would expect one little thing that they could improve this year – just change the Nespresso capsule coffeemaker into a fresh-ground one at the media lounge.

Oh, never mind.

Sun Xiaochen, China Daily