The USTA announced that Bob and Mike Bryan will play a unique exhibition to help kick off the 2012 USTA Australian Open Wild Card Playoffs, held December 14-16 at Life Time Athletic & Tennis at Peachtree Corners in Norcross, Ga.
Five select doubles teams from Georgia , to be chosen from the state’s top players, from juniors to teaching professionals, will each take on the Bryan brothers in a first-to-four-games exhibition match in the “Battle of Georgia.” The exhibition will take place on Friday, Dec. 14, the opening day of the fourth USTA Australian Open Wild Card Playoffs at Life Time, formerly known as the Racquet Club of the South, a USTA Certified Regional Training Center.
Sixteen talented players, eight men and eight women to be announced at a later date, will compete in the wild card playoffs on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, with each champion earning a singles main draw wild card into the 2013 Australian Open. The USTA secured the opportunity through a reciprocal agreement with Tennis Australia, where the two national tennis federations exchanged wild cards for the 2012 US Open and 2013 Australian Open.
Madison Keys, at 16 years old, and Jesse Levine won last year’s events, while current Top 100 players Ryan Harrison and Lauren Davis are among previous champions. Last year’s Australian Open Wild Card Playoffs also included Jack Sock and Steve Johnson, who each advanced to the third round of the 2012 US Open, along with Top 100 player Coco Vandeweghe and local favorite Taylor Townsend, currently the No. 1-ranked junior in the world.
©Daily Tennis News Wire
Topics: Australian Open Wild Card, Bob Bryan, Bryan Brothers, Mike Bryan, Sports, Tennis News, Usta