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International tennis legend John McEnroe will play at this year’s Tradition-ICAP Liverpool International Tennis Tournament. The former world number one will play and entertain the crowds at Calderstones Park in June. He will be joined by the world number one doubles champions the Bryan Brothers.
During his successful career, McEnroe won seven Grand Slam singles titles, three at Wimbledon and four at the US Open. He also won nine Grand Slam men's doubles titles and one Grand Slam mixed doubles title. However the enigmatic star is best remembered for his shot-making artistry, confrontational on-court behaviour and famous rivalries with Björn Borg, Jimmy Connors and Ivan Lendl. Anders Borg, Tournament Director at Northern Vision, the event and sports management company behind the event, said: “We are extremely excited to have such a legend of the game joining us at this year’s tournament. His high profile and unpredictable personality is certain to attract a great deal of interest, which we are delighted about. The line up for this year just indicates the prestige and consistency of the tournament and we are certain that this year will be a real spectacle for all tennis fans across the city.”
Jeremy Bates, who won the first British doubles title at Wimbledon in 1987, for the first time in 51 years, and later went on to win the Australian Open in 1991, will also be among the line-up at this year’s event. He won two Grand Slam mixed doubles titles during his career and after retiring from the professional circuit he has continued to be heavily involved in tennis, captaining Britain’s Davis Cup team. Paul-Henri Mathieu, from France, will headline the ATP Players’ singles event in Liverpool. He is currently ranked 41 in the ATP list.
The five day tournament attracts approximately 17,500 members of the general public and 2,500 corporate individuals and numbers are increasing year on year as the tournament continues to grow in popularity. Councillor Warren Bradley, Liverpool City Council leader, added: “The presence of such high profile players at this year’s Liverpool International Tennis Tournament adds both credibility and prestige not just to the event but also to Liverpool. Hosting such a top sporting event really does put Liverpool on the map and I am sure it will create a lot of excitement and anticipation across the city.”
The Prince’s Trust is the event’s official charity for the tournament and will receive revenue generated through a series of initiatives leading up to and throughout the tournament. The funds will go directly towards providing practical and financial support to young people from across the north-west to enable them to move into work, education or training.
A critical element of Northern Vision events is the inclusion and development of sport programmes for children. They currently organise and operate one of the north-west's largest tennis programmes, encouraging more than 6,000 children to learn and participate in the sport. The programme is designed not only to find and nurture a star of the future, but to use sport to break boundaries, build team spirit and develop critical social skills.
Tickets for the Tradition-ICAP Liverpool International Tennis Tournament, which takes place from Wednesday 16th June – Sunday 20th June, are now on sale. Tickets are available from Northern Vision’s dedicated Liverpool International tennis tournament website www.liverpooltennis.co.uk.
Alternatively tickets are also available from Ticketmaster at www.ticketmaster.co.uk and the Liverpool Echo Arena at www.echoarena.com
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