Dubai Tennis Championships 2023: Men's draw, schedule, players, prize money breakdown and more
The Middle East swing will come to a conclusion with this week's Dubai Tennis Championships, which will be held from February 27 to March 4.
World No. 1 Novak Djokovic leads a packed draw as the top seed. He's aiming for his third straight title of the season and is making his comeback following his triumph at the Australian Open. The Serb's most recent title at the venue came back in 2020.
Defending champion Andrey Rublev is the second seed. Top 10 players Daniil Medvedev and Felix Auger-Aliassime are seeded third and fourth respectively. Thanasi Kokkinakis, Alexei Popyrin and Malek Jaziri were among the wildcard recipients.
With plenty of stars from the men's tour in action, the tournament is bound to yield a plethora of thrillers throughout the week. Here's all the relevant information about the Dubai Tennis Championships:
What is the Dubai Tennis Championships?
The tournament was first held in 1993 as an ATP 250 event without proper facilities. By 1996, a new stadium was constructed to host the tournament. Later on, it was also upgraded to an ATP 500 tournament.
Roger Federer holds the record for most titles here with eight, followed by Novak Djokovic with five. Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray, Stan Wawrinka and Andy Roddick are among the other notable former champions. The tournament is held on outdoor hardcourts and features a 32-player draw.
Venue
The Dubai Tennis Championships will take place at the Aviation Club Tennis Center in Dubai, UAE.
Players
Novak Djokovic headlines the top half of the draw and will face a qualifier in the first round. Andy Murray will take on Hubert Hurkacz in his opener and could set up a potential quarterfinal date with the Serb down the line.
Daniil Medvedev will also kick off his campaign against a qualifier, and could be up against Alexander Bublik in the second round. Borna Coric's first-round showdown against Dan Evans will be another match to keep an eye on in this half of the draw.
Defending champion Andrey Rublev leads the bottom half of the draw. He'll commence his title defense against Filip Krajinovic. Alexander Zverev was drawn against the young Jiri Lehecka in his opening round clash.
Felix Auger-Aliassime faces the big-serving Maxime Cressy in the first round. Karen Khachanov, Lorenzo Sonego and Alejandro Davidovich Fokina are also lurking in this half of the draw.
The men's draw can be found here.
Schedule
The qualifying rounds will take place from February 25-26. The tournament begins on Monday, February 27, with the first-round matches. The quarterfinals and semifinals are set for Thursday and Friday.
The championship round will take place on Saturday, March 4. The doubles final will begin at 4:30 pm local time, followed by the singles final at 7:00 pm. The official schedule can be accessed here.
Prize Money
The total prize money for the 2023 Dubai Tennis Championships is $2,855,495. The singles champion will receive a cheque worth $533,990 and 500 ranking points. Here's a detailed breakdown of the prize money and ranking points:
Where to watch
Viewers in the US and UK can watch the Dubai Tennis Championships live on the following channels and sites:-
USA: Viewers in the United States can catch all the action on Tennis Channel.
UK: Fans in the UK can watch the proceedings live on Amazon Prime Video.
For more information regarding the broadcast of matches, click here.