S’pore to host WTA Tour tennis competition from 2025 to 2027
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The WTA 250 event will be held at the new Kallang Tennis Hub.
ST PHOTO: MARK CHEONG
SINGAPORE – International tennis action will return to Singapore in January 2025, with a Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) 250 tournament taking place at the new Kallang Tennis Hub in a three-year deal.
Kallang Alive Sport Management (KASM), which runs the Singapore Sports Hub, made the announcement in a statement on July 4, adding that the event will take place in the week of Jan 27, 2025.
The Republic last hosted a top women’s tennis tournament when the likes of Naomi Osaka, Caroline Wozniacki and eventual winner Elina Svitolina battled it out in the WTA Finals at the Singapore Indoor Stadium in 2018,
In 2021, the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), the men’s main Tour, also held an ATP 250 Singapore Open at the OCBC Arena.
KASM chief executive officer Quek Swee Kuan said they are excited to be joining the WTA Tour again, bringing live tennis action to Singapore for audiences here and across the region.
He added: “We aim to bring the tennis fraternity, the wider community, and our junior and national athletes together to celebrate the sport through larger-scale activations, from tryouts to friendlies, that may be held alongside the tournament.
“At the same time, we will look to extend support to local or regional tournaments that will foster the growth of the sport and the region’s tennis talents.”
WTA 250 competitions are the lowest tier of annual women’s tennis tournaments on the main WTA Tour, after the Grand Slams, the WTA Finals, the WTA 1000 and 500 events.
WTA chairman Steve Simon believes that the “state-of-the-art facilities” here will ensure that the tournament is a “huge success”.
The Kallang Tennis Hub, which opened in April,
It consists of seven indoor courts in air-conditioned halls with a seating capacity of 1,297 and 300 more retractable seats ready to be deployed.
Two of the three indoor show courts can be configured to host tournaments with Hawk-Eye technology, or electronic line calling, while all the 12 full-sized outdoor courts are also competition-ready.
Sport Singapore chief executive officer Alan Goh feels that this event will “further bolster Singapore’s standing as a premier sporting destination”, while tennis enthusiasts can also be inspired to learn, spectate and play this sport.
Jasmine Quek, president of the Singapore Tennis Association, added: “By witnessing world-class professional players in action, our young athletes will surely be inspired to elevate their level of competition.
“Additionally, we hope to create exciting fringe activities that boost community interest and participation in tennis.
“This event will also pave the way for Singapore to host more tournaments for the region and enhance our professional officiating capabilities.”
Tennis fans that The Straits Times spoke to are excited about the new tournament.
Victoria Tan, 33, who works in the special education industry, said: “It’s been a while since we had a WTA event held in Singapore.
“When the WTA Finals was held in Singapore, it was awesome to experience first-hand high-quality tennis.
“I’m glad that there are some plans to bring tennis to Singapore since it’s something that I’m interested in as well as the boom in the number of people playing tennis since Covid hit.”
Claire Chan, 20, a computing undergraduate at the National University of Singapore, said: “As a young female tennis player growing up, I had always wanted to watch more professionals in person and I’m glad that I will finally get the chance to.
“I think the decision to host these events is definitely a great step towards (Singapore’s) goal.
“It would be great if KASM could support the local youth scene so we can hopefully see Singaporeans playing these big events in the future.”
