Publication Date: Friday, May 06, 2005
Serena, Venus join No. 1 Davenport in Bank of West
Serena, Venus join No. 1 Davenport in Bank of West
(May 06, 2005) Former champion Kim Clijsters also among group of world's top tennis players who'll play in this summer's star-studded event at Stanford
by Rick Eymer
With four of the top 17 women's tennis players already committed, this year's Bank of the West Classic is shaping up as one of the most star-studded events of the season.
Top-ranked and defending Classic champion Lindsay Davenport, No. 4 Serena Williams, No. 11 Venus Williams and No. 17 Kim Clijsters have all made early commitments for the July tournament.
"We are expecting a great week of tennis," Tournament Director Gus Sampras said. "We're pleased to have a strong commitment of top players."
Venus Williams and Clijsters are both two-time champions at Stanford. Davenport won her third Bank of the West title last year.
Davenport owns 45 career WTA Tour singles titles, including three Grand Slam events. She's currently 22-2 overall this season, 15-1 on hardcourt, and has won titles at the Bausch and Lomb Championships and Dubai Duty Free Women's Open. She owns victories over Maria Sharapova and Venus Williams this year.
Serena Williams, who has won 13 of 15 matches, beat Davenport, 2-6 6-3 6-0, to win the Australian Open in January. She has 26 career titles and will be making her Bank of the West debut this season.
Venus Williams is still looking for her first title of the season, though she has 31 for her career. She reached the quarterfinals of the Australian Open and Bausch & Lomb Championships, and the semifinals of the NASDAQ-100 Open.
Clijsters beat Davenport, 6-4, 4-6, 6-2, to win the Pacific Life Open, and then beat Sharapova, 6-3, 7-5, to win the NASDAQ-100.
Clijsters injured her right leg on Thursday, and was forced to retire from her match with Patty Schnyder in the third round of the Ladies German Open.
"I'll just have to wait two days for the MRI," Clijsters told the Associated Press. "Maybe I'll be back to play the French Open. I can only hope for the best. It's very frustrating."
Clijsters, undefeated in 12 matches on hardcourt this season, had reached at least the semifinals in each of her previous three tournaments.
The $585,000 Bank of the West Classic, which opens July 25 at Taube Tennis Center on the Stanford campus, is a WTA Tour Tier II event with a 28-player singles draw and 16-team doubles draw. The event kicks off the U.S. Open Series and is the first of three tournaments in California during the summer which leads to the U.S. Open.
Individual ticket sales for the Bank of the West begin Monday and will be available through 866-982-8497 or bankofthewestclassic.com.
Tickets range from $12-$82 per session, and weekend packages are available beginning at $195. Day sessions are 11 a.m. Monday through Thursday, 12 p.m. on Friday and 1 p.m. on Saturday. Evening sessions start at 7:30 p.m.. through Saturday. Sunday's championship match begins at 12 p.m.
Qualifying matches, played on July 23 and 24, are free to the public.
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