PETKOVIC, GOERGES AND LISICKI TO PLAY IN MERCURY INSURANCE OPEN PRESENTED BY TRI-CITY MEDICAL CENTER

Written by: Staff on 23rd July 2011

PETKOVIC, GOERGES AND LISICKI TO PLAY IN MERCURY INSURANCE OPEN PRESENTED BY TRI-CITY MEDICAL CENTER

Andrea Petkovic of Germany returns to Ksenia Pervak of Russia during their third round match for the Wimbledon Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis Club, in London, Britain, 24 June 2011. EPA/KERIM OKTEN |

Carlsbad, Calif. (July 22, 2011) – Andrea Petkovic, Julia Goerges and Sabine Lisicki, Germany’s top three female professional tennis stars, will play in the 2011 Mercury Insurance Open, July 30 to August 7 at the La Costa Resort and Spa, tournament officials announced today.

“All three of these dynamic rapidly-rising players have a very entertaining style. They are starting to make an impact in women’s professional tennis and are on the verge of achieving great things in the sport,” said Mercury Insurance Open Tournament Director Raquel Giscafre.

Petkovic, ranked 11th in the world, captured her second career WTA singles title in Brisbane, Australia in January. She also reached the quarterfinals at the Australian Open and French Open earlier this year. Petkovic will be making her first appearance in Carlsbad.

Goerges is currently ranked a career-high 16th in the world. She won her second career WTA title in Stuttgart, Germany in April, defeating No. 1 in the world Caroline Wozniacki, 7-6 (3), 6-3 in the final. Goerges will be making her first appearance in Carlsbad.

Lisicki, ranked 26th in the world in the latest WTA rankings, achieved her best singles result in a Grand Slam when she reached the semifinals at Wimbledon this year. Just prior to Wimbledon, Lisicki won her second career WTA singles title at Birmingham, England on grass. She will also be making her first Carlsbad appearance.

Tournament officials also announced that Kim Clijsters of Belgium, the two-time defending US Open champion and reigning Australian Open titlist, along with 2011 Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic, have withdrawn from the Mercury Insurance Open.

Clijsters is still recovering from the same right ankle injury that forced her to miss the Wimbledon Championships earlier this summer.

The seventh-ranked Kvitova, who was scheduled to make her first career appearance at the La Costa Resort and Spa, is suffering from a pulled abdominal muscle.

“I am sorry I am unable to play in the Mercury Insurance Open this year but I’m still recovering from an injury that happened at Wimbledon,” Kvitova said. “Best wishes for a great tournament and I hope to be in Carlsbad next year.”

Giscafre says the tournament still has a very strong field. “We continue to have an excellent draw that includes world No. 3 Vera Zvonareva, defending champion Svetlana Kuznetsova and last year’s finalist Agnieszka Radwanska,” Giscafre said.

Other WTA players entered in the 2011 Mercury Insurance Open include former world No. 1 Ana Ivanovic of Serbia, Russia’s Maria Kirilenko, Flavia Pennetta of Italy, Daniela Hantuchova and Dominika Cibulkova of Slovakia and Americans Coco Vandeweghe, Christina McHale and Melanie Oudin.

Individual tickets are now on sale for the 2011 Mercury Insurance Open, July 30 to August 7 at the La Costa Resort and Spa. Reserved grandstand and box seat tickets, which range from $10-$125, are now available online at mercuryinsuranceopen.com or through Ticketmaster at ticketmaster.com. Tournament ticket packages are also on sale and begin at $70.