Tennis is back with WTA and ATP tournaments in Abu Dhabi, Delray Beach (January 6th to the 13th), and later this month the ATP Cup (February 1st to the 5th) – with many top players back in action! These tune ups will be essential for all the top players as they prepare for the Australian Open which begins February 8th. In addition to these tournaments, Doha and Dubai will be hosting Australian Open qualifying from January 10th to the 13th.

So, who’s playing in what?

The WTA event in Abu Dhabi and the ATP Cup seem to be the two events that will feature the most top players. Abu Dhabi will feature WTA 2020 Player of the Year, Sofia Kenin as the top seed, as well as Elina Svitolina, Karolina Pliskova, and Aryna Sabalenka rounding out the top four seeds. That’s four top ten players who will be fighting it out for this title. Additionally, there’s top talent such as Garbine Muguruza, Elise Mertens, and Marketa Vondrousova who will be looking to get through the draw. This event should be an exciting start to the year!

Delray Beach will be happening at the same time as Abu Dhabi, and although it won’t have as many top players in attendance, it should still be entertaining and competitive. The top seed is up and coming Chilean Cristian Garin, followed by John Isner, Adrian Mannarino, and Hubert Hurkacz. Also, in the mix will be Frances Tiafoe, who won this tournament a few years back.

The event that will definitely be worthwhile waiting for is the ATP Cup. This team competition was exciting and competitive last year, and the second edition should not disappoint, especially given how many top players have already committed. The ATP Cup will consist of 12 countries, including defending champions Serbia and finalists Spain, who treated us to an exciting matchup between Djokovic and Nadal in 2020. Rounding out that field will be Austria, Germany, Argentina, and Russia, all teams boasting players such as Thiem, Zverev, Schwartzman, and Medvedev.

Finally, qualifying for the Australian Open should be quite entertaining as well. There’s solid players on both the Women’s and Men’s fields. On the women’s side, you have Eugenie Bouchard, who in the second half of 2020 was playing some solid tennis. American Cici Bellis is also in that qualifying draw. She was injured in 2019 but made some noise at the Australian Open in 2020 and has the tools to make another run.

Like always, don’t forget to jump on to the TennisPAL app to stay up to date on tennis news, find groups of friends to play with, and get a virtual coach to help with your tennis game.