Winston-Salem Open Announces Doubles Player Field
Top Seeds are Recent Wimbledon Champions
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AUGUST 8, 2012) – The Winston-Salem Open at Wake Forest University announced today ten pairings for the doubles matches for the tournament taking place August 18-25. The Winston-Salem Open will feature 16 doubles pairings in total, including top-seeded Jonathan Marray, 31, and Frederik Nielsen, 28. The remaining six pairs will be determined through on site sign-ins and wildcards.
After going through qualifying to play doubles at Wimbledon, Marray (Great Britain) and Nielsen (Denmark) emerged as the defending Wimbledon champions. Wimbledon was the first career doubles title for Marray and Nielson, both of whom have enjoyed long tennis careers. They defeated Marcel Granollers and Marc Lopez in the first round at Wimbledon, stunned the Bryan brothers in the semifinals and beat Robert Lindstedt and Horia Tecau in the finals.
Gael Monfils will play both singles and doubles at the Winston-Salem Open as he works his way back into shape for the US Open. He has been out since May with a right knee injury and will be making his highly anticipated return to the ATP World Tour in Winston-Salem. Monfils will team as the No. 7 seeds with rising Frenchman Benoit Paire in doubles.
The complete list of pairings includes:
Jonathan Marray (GBR) and Frederik Nielsen (DEN)
Colin Fleming (GBR) and Ross Hutchins (GBR)
Alexander Peya (AUT) and Bruno Soares (BRA)
Saniago Gonzalez (MEX) and Scott Lipsky (USA)
Julian Knowle (AUT) and Filip Polasek (SVK)
Eric Butorac (USA) and Paul Hanley (AUS)
Gael Monfils (FRA) and Benoit Paire (FRA)
David Marrero (ESP) and Andre Sa (BRA)
Christopher Kas (GER) and Jamie Murray (GBR)
Treat Conrad Huey (PHI) and Dominic Inglot (GBR)
“Much like our singles players, the Winston-Salem Open has an incredible field of contenders for doubles matches. In fact, our doubles field is so strong that defending champions Jonathan Erlich and Andy Ram are currently listed as alternates instead of being included in the main draw,” said tournament director Bill Oakes. “We’re particularly excited that Gael Monfils will be making his return to play in both singles and doubles here in Winston-Salem. Fans will get to see a lot of his entertaining play, which should prove to be a thrilling experience.”
About the Winston-Salem Open
The Winston-Salem Open, an ATP World Tour 250 event with a total purse of $625,000, will take place from August 18-25, 2012, with qualifying set for August 18. The tournament will be the final men’s event of the Emirates Airline US Open Series. For more information on the 2012 Winston-Salem Open, please go to www.winstonsalemopen.com.
About the Emirates Airline US Open Series
Now in its ninth season, the Emirates Airline US Open Series continues to serve as a true regular season of hard court tennis, linking 10 summer tournaments to the US Open. Fans follow the action throughout the summer during national broadcast coverage while players battle for $40 million, including a chance for bonus prize money at the US Open. The Series collectively reached a U.S. television audience of 39 million and drew more than 800,000 on-site fans in 2011. In 2012, Emirates Airline became the title sponsor of the Series, as well as the official airline of the US Open. The Emirates Airline US Open Series is also supported by sponsors American Express, Chase, Citizen Watch Company, Esurance, Evian and Gatorade.
Americans Mardy Fish and Serena Williams swept the 2011 Emirates Airline US Open Series men’s and women’s titles. In 2007, Roger Federer collected the biggest paycheck in tennis history – $2.4 million – for winning the US Open and the Emirates Airline US Open Series. In 2005, Kim Clijsters also captured both the US Open and the Series, winning $2.2 million – the largest purse in women’s sports history – and equaled that amount in 2010, winning the US Open and finishing the Emirates Airline US Open Series in second place.
