Tursunov, Ferrero To Play at Indianapolis Tennis Championships

© Getty ImagesRussian Dmitry Tursunov won the Indianapolis title in 2007.

International tennis stars ranked among the top in the world have committed to this year’s Indianapolis Tennis Championships Presented by Lilly, giving the tournament a great mix of international and American players. Dmitry Tursunov, Juan Carlos Ferrero, Marcos Baghdatis and Arnuad Clement will make their appearance among a player field of 32 and could be among the stars tennis fans get to hob-knob with in the Player’s Lounge in their new Power Hour with the Pros promotion.

“We have always believed that with the balance of American and international players, we will deliver some of the best sporting entertainment in town,” said Indianapolis Tennis Championships Director Kevin Martin. “Tennis is a global sport with growing popularity, and each and every year we have been able to attract tennis talent from all across the globe to spend a week in Indianapolis. They like our city and we like having them here to give our fans exposure to world-class tennis competition.”

This is the first year the tournament has offered exclusive extended access to the Player’s Lounge for fans. The promotion is tied to a one-day-only offer if fans purchase their tickets anytime through midnight on Wednesday, June 17. Six winners will be selected from the buyer pool and will enjoy one hour in the Player’s Lounge for dinner, games, autographs and photos with the pros. Winners will be announced on the tournament Web site on June 18 to mark the one-month countdown to the tournament’s week of competition that includes stars like Andy Roddick, Taylor Dent and Sam Querrey.

2007 Champion and current ATP World Tour No. 27 Dmitry Tursunov will return to Indianapolis for a fifth consecutive year. In 2008, the 26-year-old Russian was the first defending champion to reach the finals at Indianapolis then fail to defend his title since Jimmy Connors lost to Manuel Orantes in 1977. He lost to Gilles Simon 6-4, 6-4. Tursunov has had mixed results in 2009, in large part due to an ankle injury that sidelined him for two months prior to the French Open. Last year he won two ATP titles (Sydney & Metz) for a second year in a row and finished in the Top 30.

Former ATP World Tour No. 1 Juan Carlos Ferrero is making his debut in Indianapolis this year. The 29-year-old Spaniard reached the No. 1 ranking in 2003 after he advanced to the finals at the US Open (l. to Roddick). That year he also won a Grand Slam title at the French Open and was a quarterfinalist at the Australian Open. He also reached the fourth round at Wimbledon. In April, he broke a 110-tournament title drought by winning Casablanca with a straight-set victory over countryman Florent Serra. It was Ferrero’s first title since October 2003 in Madrid and first on clay since capturing Roland Garros in 2003. He is currently ranked No. 69 and has 12 career singles titles. He won his 400th career ATP World Tour Match (403-214) at London/Queen’s Club  in a 1st RD win over Sebastien Grosjean en route to first career grass court semifinal (l. Murray).

Marcos Baghdatis, a 24-year-old Cypriot, will be making his second appearance in Indianapolis and first since 2005 when he lost to Kenneth Carlson 5-7, 6-2, 4-6, in the second round. In 2008, he was limited to 12 tournaments and fell to No. 100 due to injuries during the season. His best results were semifinals in Marseille (l. to Ancic) and quarterfinals in Halle (l. to Federer). He also reached the third round at the Australian Open where he lost a four-hour and 45-minute, five-set marathon that finished at 4:34 a.m. to Hewitt. He advanced to the fourth round at Wimbledon (l. to Lopez 8-6 in fifth set) and then was sidelined for two months with a stress fracture in his right wrist. He began 2009 by reaching the fourth round at the Australian Open (l. Djokovic) and quarterfinals at Johannesburg and Delray Beach.

French veteran and 31-year-old Arnaud Clement is making his first appearance in Indianapolis since 2002 and sixth overall. He has a lifetime record of 7-5 and his best result was the quarterfinals in 2002 (l. Mantilla). In 2008, he finished in the Top 100 for the ninth time in the past 10 years, highlighted by a Wimbledon-best quarterfinals run at the All England Club, losing 8-6 in the fifth set to Schuettler in 5:12, the longest match of the season.

Tursunov, Ferrero, Baghdatis and Clement will join previously announced commitments by Andy Roddick, Sam Querrey, and Taylor Dent at this year’s Indianapolis Tennis Championships held July 18-26 at the Indianapolis Tennis Center on the campus of IUPUI. Tickets for the Championships can be purchased online at tennisindy.com or by calling 800-622-LOVE.

The Indianapolis Tennis Championships Presented by Lilly is a world-class ATP Tour event held annually in Indianapolis and is a part of the Olympus US Open Series. The event traces its roots back to 1920 and has hosted such notable players as Pete Sampras, Arthur Ashe, Jimmy Connors, and Andre Agassi. For more information, please visit www.tennisindy.com.