Pacific Life Open Field Player Release for 2007 (1/31/07)
Pacific Life Open Field Player Release for 2007
Written by Todd Elliot
NUMBER ONE RANKED PLAYERS IN THE WORLD RETURN TO DEFEND PACIFIC LIFE OPEN TITLES
Federer And Sharapova Headline Talented Fields Featuring Veterans And
Rising Stars
INDIAN WELLS,
women’s players in the world, Roger Federer and Maria Sharapova, will
return to defend their Pacific Life Open titles March 5-18, 2007 at
the
star-studded fields in the most-attended non-Grand Slam tennis
tournament in the world that includes top-ranked Americans James Blake
and Andy Roddick, defending French Open champion Rafael Nadal,
five-time Grand Slam champion Martina Hingis, 2006 Pacific Life Open
finalist Elena Dementieva, and world No. 7 Nadia Petrova.
Last year Federer had another one of the best years in tennis history
winning twelve titles including the Australian Open, Wimbledon, the
Open, four Masters Series crowns including a third Pacific Life Open
title and the year-end Tennis Masters Cup, all while compiling a final
win loss record of 92-5. This past weekend, he began his 2007
campaign by winning his 10th Grand Slam title at the Australian Open.
Sharapova had a fantastic 2006 season beginning with her first Pacific
Life Open title, winning her second major, the US Open (
was the first), and three other Sony Ericsson WTA Tour events. This
week she became the No. 1 ranked women’s player in the world, a spot
she has held two other times in her career. She also started
strong fashion by reaching the finals of the Australian Open.
Blake, who was a finalist at the 2006 Pacific Life Open enjoyed a
tremendous season claiming five ATP titles and in addition reached the
finals of the Tennis Masters Cup before falling to Federer. Roddick,
currently ranked No.
in 2006 and added a title at the Masters Series event in
Nadal, who handed Federer four of his five defeats in 2006, won his
second Grand Slam title at the French Open and four ATP titles,
including two Masters Series victories at
securing his current No. 2 world ranking.
Hingis, who returned to action on the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour (SEWTA)
this past year after a three-year hiatus due to injuries, picked up
where she left off winning in
climbing to No.
Open champion capturing the title in 1998. Dementieva, who was a
finalist at the 2006 Pacific Life Open, added two SEWTA Tour titles
last year and reached the quarterfinals of
Petrova had a brilliant 2006 winning five championships while climbing
to a career-high ranking of No.
Other ATP and SEWTA Tour stars that will again descend on the Indian
Lleyton Hewitt (2002 and 2003), 2007 Australian Open finalist Fernando
Gonzalez, 2004 Roland Garros champion Anastasia Myskina, 2004
Australian Open champion Marat Safin and his sister Dinara Safina,
Argentine superstar David Nalbandian, 2006 French Open semifinalist
Nicole Vaidisova, men’s world No. 3 and 8 Nikolay Davydenko and Ivan
Ljubicic, and American favorites Robby Ginepri and Mardy Fish.
As an ATP Masters Series and Sony Ericsson WTA Tour event, each of the
top players in the entry system rankings will earn automatic entry
into the 96-player Pacific Life Open main draw. Up-and-coming stars to
watch for this year are Andy Murray of
Richard Gasquet of
of the
Chakvetadze of
Mirza of
The women’s qualifying draw will take place March 5-6 while the men’s
qualifying rounds will be held March 7-8 with 48 players in each draw
vying for 12 spots in the main draws; first-round play will begin
Wednesday, March 7 for the women and Friday, March 9 for the men. The
women’s final will be held on Super Saturday, March 17, which also
will feature men’s semifinal action. The men’s championship will be
held Sunday, March 18.
All of these great players will experience something different at this
year’s Pacific Life Open as the tournament will feature Electronic
Line Calling, along with a player challenge system. This system, which
was used throughout the US Open Series, the US Open, and the 2007
Australian Open, allows players to challenge line calls, after which
an official replay will be projected onto soon-to-be installed
in-stadium video boards and simultaneously fed to the television
broadcast. This will allow players, officials, on-site fans and
television viewers the opportunity to see the live results of a player
challenge.
About the Pacific Life Open
The Pacific Life Open, a two-week combined ATP Masters Series and Sony
Ericsson WTA Tour is held annually at the beautiful Indian Wells
desert oasis. For information on tickets or travel packages call
About Pacific Life
Founded in 1868, Pacific Life provides life insurance products,
individual annuities, and mutual funds, and offers a variety of
investment products and services to individuals, businesses, and
pension plans. Pacific Life counts more than half of the 100 largest
Standards Association (IMSA), whose membership promotes high ethical
standards for the sale of individual life insurance and annuities.
For additional information about Pacific Life, including its current
financial strength ratings from A.M. Best, Fitch Ratings, Standard &
Poor’s, and Moody’s, visit the company Web site at
www.PacificLife.com. 1 Data compiled by Pacific Life using the FORTUNE
500 list as of April 2006