MALLORCA, June 15, 2021
One day ahead of the start of the Mallorca Championships, 2001 Wimbledon champion Goran Ivanisevic and former World No. 2 Tommy Haas will play an exhibition match to inaugurate the new Centre Court at the Mallorca Country Club in Santa Ponca.
Two months shy of his 30th birthday, Ivanisevic became the lowest-ranked player and the first wild card entry to win The Championships at Wimbledon. By the summer of 2001, the Croat was ranked World No. 125. This was not sufficient to earn him an automatic place in the main draw at Wimbledon but, given his past record as a three-time runner-up, he was awarded a wild card.
He defeated former and future World No. 1 players Carlos Moya, Andy Roddick and Marat Safin as well as Fredrik Jonsson and Greg Rusedski to reach the semi-final, beating home favourite Tim Henman in a five set, rain-affected match, setting up a final with the previous year’s runner-up and former US Open champion Pat Rafter. It was Ivanisevic’s first singles final since 1998. In an encounter lasting just over three hours, Ivanisevic defeated the Australian in five sets.
Ivanisevic and Haas will start their match under floodlight on Friday, 18 June at 8:30 pm local time. Tickets for the Grand Opening Event are available via www.entradas.com
The Mallorca Championships will be hosted by the Mallorca Country Club, which shines in new splendor after a comprehensive renovation. “The Mallorca Country Club will be the new home of the Mallorca Championships. We have invested heavily in redesigning the entire facility to turn it into a club that is open all year round and will host various events. At the end of this summer we will be able to open the club to the sports-loving public,” said organizer Edwin Weindorfer.
Djokovic to play doubles
The opening event will be attended by World No. 1 and recent Roland-Garros champion Novak Djokovic, who will compete in the doubles main draw.
