Serena Is On Entry List For Indian Wells

Written by: Staff on 22nd January 2014

Serena Is On Entry List For Indian Wells

epa04021690 Serena Williams of the USA in action against Vesna Dolonc of Serbia in round two of the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne, Australia, 15 January 2014. EPA/DAVID CROSLING AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND OUT |

BNP Paribas Open To Unveil New Stadium 2 With McEnroe Challenge for Charity Presented By Esurance;

Hawkeye To Be Added For Qualifying Rounds

The BNP Paribas Open, the largest ATP World Tour and WTA combined two-week event in the world, to be held March 3-16, 2014 at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden, has released its entry lists, which are highlighted by 11 former BNP Paribas Open Champions and 15 Grand Slam Champions, it was announced today by Steve Simon, tournament director.

In addition, the Indian Wells Tennis Garden and the BNP Paribas Open will unveil its new Stadium 2 and site expansion with the McEnroe Challenge for Charity presented by Esurance on Saturday, March 1. This one-day special event benefiting local charities will feature free admission and multiple Grand Slam Champions John McEnroe, Jim Courier, Peter Fleming and Rick Leach. McEnroe will play Courier in a best of three sets singles match (Super Tie-Break played for the third set), followed by McEnroe and Fleming playing Courier and Leach in a nine game doubles pro-set. Each player and doubles team will represent a designated local charity, and 100 percent of the prize money earned – $40,000 for singles ($25,000 for the winner, $15,000 for the loser) and $40,000 for doubles ($25,000 for the winning team, $15,000 for the losing team) – will be donated to the charity the player or team represents.

The announcement of the 2014 BNP Paribas Open entry lists kicks off a six week countdown to the beginning of the tournament when more than 300 of the world’s best players will descend on Indian Wells and compete for more than $ 10 million in prize money, and the right to hoist the prestigious trophies. In addition, the Hawkeye line-calling technology, which is on all main draw match courts at the tournament, will be added for the qualifying rounds.

On the men’s side, the entry list includes World No. 1, 13-time Grand Slam Champion and defending BNP Paribas Open Champion Rafael Nadal (2007, 2009, 2013), six-time Grand Slam Champion and World No. 2 Novak Djokovic (2008, 2011), World No. 4 and defending Wimbledon Champion Andy Murray, and four-time BNP Paribas Open Champion, 17-time Grand Slam Champion and World No. 6 Roger Federer (2004-2006, 2012). In addition, all the remaining top 10 ranked players are entered, along with two-time Grand Slam and BNP Paribas Open Champion Lleyton Hewitt (2003, 2004).

On the women’s side, the entry list includes World No. 1, 17-time Grand Slam Champion, and two-time BNP Paribas Open Champion Serena Williams (1999, 2001), two-time Grand Slam Champion and World No. 2 Victoria Azarenka (2012), and defending BNP Paribas Open Champion, four-time Grand Slam Champion, and World No. 3 Maria Sharapova (2006, 2013). Other former BNP Paribas Open champions on the list include World No. 8 Jelena Jankovic (2010), World No. 10 Caroline Wozniacki (2011), Ana Ivanovic (2008) and Daniela Hantuchova (2002, 2007). In addition, all the remaining top 10 ranked players are entered as well.

“We are very excited to showcase our new site expansion, including the new Stadium 2, to our fans, sponsors, players and media with the McEnroe Challenge for Charity presented by Esurance,” said Simon. “While it is too soon to know whether she will play or not, we are pleased to see Serena’s name on the entry list. Based on her comments at the Australian Open we know playing in the tournament is something she is thinking about.”

The remaining spots in the draws will be filled with winners of the Qualifying tournament (March 3-5) and Wildcards, which will be announced in the coming weeks.

The Stadium 2 gates will open for the McEnroe Challenge for Charity presented by Esurance at 5:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 1, and will give 8,000 fans the opportunity to take in the spectacular site expansion that includes a new East entrance and Walk of Palms, an additional shade structure with video walls, four more practice courts and three highly anticipated restaurants, including the renowned Nobu. At approximately 6:30 p.m. a ribbon-cutting ceremony will be held on court in Stadium 2 with live entertainment, and matches will begin at 7:00 p.m.

To reserve a complimentary ticket to the McEnroe Challenge for Charity presented by Esurance (limit of four (4) per customer), purchase tickets for the tournament, or for more information please visit www.bnpparibasopen.com or call the Indian Wells Tennis Garden Box Office 800-999-1585 or 760-200-8000.

About the BNP Paribas Open
The BNP Paribas Open is the largest ATP World Tour and WTA combined two-week event in the world, offers more than $10,000,000 in prize money, and is the only event to provide the Hawkeye line challenge system on all match courts. In 2012, more than 370,000 people attended the event. Visit www.bnpparibasopen.com to purchase tickets online and view the calendar of events, listing of main draw singles players, schedule of matches and more. Indian Wells Tennis Garden Box Office, 800-999-1585 or 760-200-8000, 78-200 Miles Avenue, Indian Wells, CA, 92210.

About BNP Paribas

BNP Paribas (www.bnpparibas.com) is one of the best rated banks in the world*. The Group has a presence in more than 80 countries and more than 200,000 employees, including more than 160,000 in Europe. It ranks highly in its three core activities: Retail Banking, Investment Solutions and Corporate & Investment Banking. In Europe, the Group has four domestic markets (Belgium, France, Italy and Luxembourg) and BNP Paribas Personal Finance is the leader in consumer lending. BNP Paribas is rolling out its integrated retail banking model across the Europe-Mediterranean zone and boasts a large network in the western part of the United States. In its Corporate & Investment Banking and Investment Solutions activities, BNP Paribas also enjoys top positions in Europe, a strong presence in the Americas and solid and fast-growing businesses in Asia. *Rated AA- by Standard & Poor’s.

About BNP Paribas and Tennis
Long-standing partner to the sport of tennis since 1973, BNP Paribas is actively involved in the game at both local and international level, and in club, schools and social tennis as well as professional events. BNP Paribas has gradually become the number one sponsor in world tennis: official sponsor of Roland Garros since 1973 and sponsor of five ATP Masters 1000 events – the BNP Paribas Masters since 1986, Monte Carlo Masters since 2005, Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome since 2006, BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells since 2009 and the Shanghai Masters since 2010. The Group is also title sponsor of the Davis Cup by BNP Paribas since 2001 and the Fed Cup by BNP Paribas since 2005, as well as being actively involved in many other international competitions including the Bank of the West Classic in California, the Grand Prix Hassan II in Casablanca, the Open 13 in Marseille and the BNP Paribas Showdown in New York. BNP Paribas is also an official partner of International Wheelchair Tennis, such as the “BNP Paribas World Team Cup”. Through its support for more than 20 national tennis associations, 2000 clubs, 550 amateur tournaments, plus schools and social programmes around the world, BNP Paribas helps to promote tennis and encourage widespread participation in the game. The Group’s commitment to social values is reflected in the sports sponsorships it has undertaken in numerous projects, including Yannick Noah’s ‘Fête le Mur’ Association and the tennis Téléthon in France, the Oberer Tennis Camp in Switzerland and the BNP Paribas ‘Taste of Tennis’ in the United States. As part of its creative sports sponsorship policy, BNP Paribas is launching a website “wearetennis.com” entirely dedicated to tennis news. The Group’s new sponsorship slogan ‘We are tennis’ underlines the fact that BNP Paribas promotes tennis for all, at all levels.

Topics: Ana Ivanovic, Andy Murray, Bnp Paribas, Caroline Wozniacki, Indian Wells Tennis Garden, Jelena Jankovic, Li Na, Lleyton Hewitt, Maria Sharapova, McEnroe Challenge, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Sports, Tennis, Tennis News