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Mubadala World Tennis Championship – 2015 Draw

By Geoff Nichols

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Mubafala World Tennis Championship – 2015 Draw

The draw has just been made for the annual Mudabala World Tennis Championship in Abu Dhabi, with a host of the world’s top stars looking to gain some match sharpness in the well-supported event out in the Far East. It is now traditional for the event to raise the curtain of the new season, with players being given the chance to experiment with what they have been practising over the winter break.

Novak Djokovic, champions on the last three occasions, will return to Abu Dhabi to play his first tennis of 2015, having finished 2014 in startling form, winning the Paris Masters and going undefeated in the World Tour Finals in London. The Serbian star, now a father, doesn’t look to be short of motivation and desire, with his typical fast starts to a new season becoming a feature of the ATP tour in recent years.

Mubadala World Tennis Championship History

YearChampionRunner-upScore
2014 Novak Djokovic David Ferrer7-5, 6-2
2013 Novak Djokovic Nicolás Almagro6–7(4–7), 6–3, 6–4
2012 Novak Djokovic David Ferrer6–2, 6–1
2011 Rafael Nadal Roger Federer7–6(7–4), 7–6(7–3)
2010 Rafael Nadal Robin Söderling7–6(7–3), 7–5
2009 Andy Murray Rafael Nadal6–4, 5–7, 6–3

Whilst the Mubadala Championship is an exhibition event that does not contribute to ranking points, the top guys tend to treat games against their rivals very seriously and you can expect some fiercely contested matches. The top half of the draw sees Djokovic receive a bye through to the semi finals where he will play the winner of Stan Wawrinka and Jo Wilfried Tsonga. It is a match-up that is a repeat of the opening rubber of the Davis Cup Final and Tsonga will be seeking revenge.

The bottom half of the draw is headed up by Rafael Nadal, who has stated his intention to return to action at the Mubadala Championship. He won the event in 2010 and 2011 and will have fond memories of his time in Abu Dhabi. It will be fascinating to see what kind of physical condition Nadal has gotten himself in for the start of the new season as even though appendix surgery is relatively minor, building up match fitness can be a slow process.

Nadal will face the victor of the clash between Andy Murray and Gael Monfils, with all eyes likely to be on Murray and the possible changes he is going to make to his game. There will be a huge amount of anticipation to see if, for example, Murray has modified his second serve, as many observers see this as a clear change the British number one needs to make. It ought to be a fun and entertaining opener for the crowd and tennis fans across the world, who have had to patiently wait through December as the tennis world takes a well earned break.

Follow lobandsmash.com to keep up to date with the latest information at the Mudabala World Tennis Championship in January 2015.

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