The ATP Tour returns to Washington this week for the Mubadala DC Open, with defending champion Alex de Minaur leading a strong field at the ATP 500 event.
Held on outdoor hard courts at the FitzGerald Tennis Center, the tournament remains one of the longest-running events on the ATP calendar since it was founded in 1969 by Arthur Ashe, Donald Dell and John A. Harris.
De Minaur heads back to the United States looking to defend the title he won in dramatic fashion last year. The Australian fought back from three championship points down to defeat Spain's Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 5-7, 7-6(3), 6-1 in a memorable final.
Source: CNN
He will face plenty of competition this time around, with several home favourites aiming to lift the trophy. Americans Ben Shelton, Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe and Tommy Paul are all entered, while rising prospects Learner Tien and #NextGenATP player Rafael Jodar will also be looking to make an impression.
The tournament offers a total prize pool of approximately RM10.4 million (US$2.47 million), with the singles champion earning around RM1.95 million (US$461,835) and 500 ATP Ranking points. The doubles champions will receive approximately RM640,000 (US$151,690) per team, along with 500 ranking points.
The main draw ceremony will take place on Sunday (July 26, Malaysian time), with qualifying matches beginning over the weekend.
Last year's doubles title went to Italy's Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori, who defeated Hugo Nys and Edouard Roger-Vasselin 6-3, 6-4 in the final.
The DC Open has produced many memorable champions over the years. Andre Agassi remains the tournament's most successful men's singles player with five titles, while Marty Riessen, Mike Bryan and Bob Bryan share the doubles record with four titles each.
The event has also crowned champions from different generations. Ken Rosewall became the oldest singles winner at 36 in 1971, while Andy Roddick lifted the trophy as an 18-year-old in 2001. Former world No. 1 players including Jimmy Connors, Ivan Lendl and Agassi have all won the title, while David Nalbandian produced one of the tournament's biggest surprises by winning as world No. 117 in 2010.
With a strong field, valuable ranking points and the North American hard-court swing gathering momentum ahead of the US Open, this year's DC Open is set to provide another week of high-quality tennis.
