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Ten players inside the Top 20 of the ATP Rankings will make their 2007 debuts at either Adelaide, Doha or Chennai as the new season kicks off in exciting fashion.

ATPtennis.com profiles the three ATP tournaments on the road to the first Grand Slam of the season: the Australian Open.

Next Generation Clubs Adelaide International
December 31, 2006 – January 7, 2007

ATP Tournament Profile | Official Web Site | 2006 Final Report

The first tournament on the ATP circuit to play host to a 32-player hybrid round-robin format over a period of eight days – are just two changes that intend to help the sport achieve broader appeal.

Fans First as ATP Primed for 2007 Changes

France’s Florent Serra (pictured) returns to Memorial Drive to defend the title he won over Xavier Malisse of Belgium, but he will face stiff competition.

Richard Gasquet, Radek Stepanek and Adelaide resident and two-time former champion Lleyton Hewitt – all placed in the Top 20 of the INDESIT ATP Rankings, also compete at the $436,000 event.

Hewitt will also partner Australian compatriot Paul Hanley in the doubles competition, having finished runner-up with Sandon Stolle in 2000.

Thomas Muster (1990), Goran Ivanisevic (1992) and Yevgeny Kafelnikov (1994, 1996) are previous singles winners of the ATP tournament, which first started in 1974.

Qatar ExxonMobil Open, Doha
January 1-7, 2007

ATP Tournament Profile | Official Web Site | 2006 Final Report

ATP World No. 3 Nikolay Davydenko (pictured) and Ivan Ljubicic, currently No. 5 in the INDESIT ATP Rankings, headline the field at the Khalifa International Tennis & Squash Complex.

Tommy Haas, 2006 Australian Open finalist Marcos Baghdatis and Andy Murray, who each finished 2006 in the Top 20 of the INDESIT ATP Rankings, also compete.

First held in 1993, the $1.1 million tournament boasts an impressive roll of honor with Grand Slam champions such as Boris Becker (1993), Stefan Edberg (1994-95), Petr Korda (1996, 1998), Jim Courier (1997) and Roger Federer (2005-06).

ATP World No. 1 and two-time champion Federer, who beat Gael Monfils of France in the 2006 final, does not return this year.

Chennai Open, Chennai
January 1-7, 2007

ATP Tournament Profile | Official Web Site | 2006 Final Report

ATP World No. 2 Rafael Nadal (pictured) will be hoping to go further than on his only previous visit to Chennai in 2004, when he lost to France’s Thierry Ascione in the first round.

David Nalbandian, currently No. 8 in the INDESIT ATP Rankings, joins the Spaniard, who went 59-12 with five titles in 2006.

In the absence of defending champion Ljubicic, the player he beat in the final, Carlos Moya, will hope to add a third title to his 2004 and 2005 vintage years.

Paradorn Srichaphan, winner in 2003, also returns for the 12th edition of the Chennai Open at the SDAT Tennis Stadium.