2010 Bank of the West Classic Boasts World-Class Player Field
STANFORD, Calif. (www.BankOfTheWestClassic.com) – The official acceptance list for the 2010 Bank of the West Classic was released Tuesday and this year’s player field will once again deliver another year of world-class tennis to the Bay Area.
Highlighted by three top-10 players and 12 players ranked among the top 30 in the world, the 40th edition of the Bank of the West Classic boasts a spectacular list of players including three-time Grand Slam champion Maria Sharapova, 2008 Olympic Gold medalist Elena Dementieva, 2010 French Open finalist Samantha Stosur, and the return of former world No. 1 Lindsay Davenport.
Tickets for the 2010 Bank of the West Classic can be purchased by calling the box office at 866-WTA-TIXS (866-982-8497) or by logging on to www.BankoftheWestClassic.com. Single-session tickets for the tournament's opening round start at just $26.
Returning to the Bank of the West Classic for the second consecutive year will be Maria Sharapova who has put together a strong 2010 season having already won two Sony Ericsson WTA Tour singles titles this year (Memphis, Strasburg). The former world No. 1 will look to improve on her quarterfinal performance last year.
Also returning to the Bank of the West Classic will be Samantha Stosur of Australia who made a splash at the 2010 French Open, defeating three former world No.1’s including Serena Williams, Justine Henin and Jelena Jankovic to reach her first Grand Slam singles final. Stosur, who reached the semifinals at last year’s Bank of the West Classic, has risen to a career-high No. 7 in the world rankings.
Current world No. 5 and 2010 French Open semifinalist Elena Dementieva and three-time Grand Slam quarterfinalist Agnieszka Radwanska, ranked No. 8, round out the top-10 ranked players heading to Palo Alto this year.
The Bank of the West Classic will also welcome the return of three-time Grand Slam champion Lindsay Davenport who will be playing in her first WTA Tour event since 2008. Davenport will partner with four-time Grand Slam doubles champion Liezel Huber in the doubles draw. This will also mark the first time Davenport has appeared at the tournament since 2005.
Other notable entries include 2009 US Open quarterfinalist and rising American star Melanie Oudin, 2009 US Open semifinalist Yanina Wickmayer of Belgium, defending Bank of the West Classic Champion Marion Bartoli of France, Israeli star Shahar Peer and Chinese standout Zheng Jie.
The Bank of the West Classic will also feature three former top-5 ranked players including Slovakian standout Daniela Hantuchova, Russian star Vera Zvonareva and Japanese legend Kamiko Date Krumm.
The 22 players on the 2010 acceptance list have combined to win 90 career WTA Tour Singles titles. Thirteen of the 22 entries have won multiple singles titles.
The tournament will also continue it’s tradition of international diversity hosting players from 15 different countries.
The 2010 Bank of the West Classic will feature a 30-player singles draw and 16-team doubles draw. The official tournament draw, and first round match-ups, will be announced on Saturday, July 24.
In addition to individual session tickets, full-week packages start at just $575 and include tickets to all 13 sessions, a pass to the exclusive Grand Marnier Plaza Club and an invitation to the Meet the Players Party. Those who purchase a pair of seats will also receive a weeklong VIP parking pass and a Bank of the West Classic Tournament program.
The Bank of the West Classic is also offering several weekend packages starting at $240.
Entering it 40th year the Bank of the West Classic is the longest running women-only professional tennis tournament in the world. The list of past champions of the event reads like a “Who's Who” of women's tennis including Lindsay Davenport, Billie Jean King, Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Andrea Jaeger, Monica Seles, Martina Hingis, Venus Williams and Kim Clijsters.
The event is owned and operated by IMG and serves as the opening women's event of the Olympus US Open Series. Qualifying will be held July 24-25 and is free to the public.
Log on to www.BankoftheWestClassic.com for more information.
2010 Bank of the West Classic Acceptance List (as of June 15) - Click Here for PDF Version
Name Country Rank
Dementieva, Elena RUS 5
Stosur, Samantha AUS 7
Radwanska, Agnieska POL 8
Bartoli, Marion FRA 12
Peer, Shahar ISR 14
Wickmayer, Yanina BEL 16
Sharapova, Maria RUS 17
Zvonareva, Vera RUS 22
Zheng, Jie CHN 24
Hantuchova, Daniela SVK 25
Kleybanova, Alisa RUS 27
Kirilenko, Maria RUS 28
Oudin, Melanie USA 34
Govortsova, Olga BLR 38
Cibulkova, Dominika SVK 46
Wozniak, Aleksandra CAN 48
Bammer, Sybille AUT 49
Date Krumm, Kimiko JPN 64
Harkleroad, Ashley USA 72
Chan, Yung-Jan TPE 83
Kudryavtseva, Alla RUS 85
Scheepers, Chanelle RSA 87
ABOUT THE BANK OF THE WEST CLASSIC: The Bank of the West Classic is the longest-running women-only professional tennis tournament in the world and is the first stop of the Olympus US Open Series. A Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Premier event, the Bank of the West Classic features a 30-player singles draw and a 16-team doubles draw with total prize money of $700,000. Held on Stanford University’s campus at the Taube Family Tennis Stadium since 1997, former champions include: Billie Jean King, Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Andrea Jaeger, Monica Seles, Martina Hingis, Lindsay Davenport and Venus Williams. The Bank of the West Classic is owned and operated by IMG.
ABOUT BANK OF THE WEST: Based in San Francisco, $60 billion-asset Bank of the West (www.bankofthewest.com) offers a full range of business, corporate, personal, trust and international banking services. For the third year in a row, Bank of the West has been ranked "highest in customer satisfaction in retail banking" in California by J.D. Power and Associates. The Bank operates more than 700 branch locations and commercial banking offices in 19 Western and Midwestern states. Bank of the West's holding company, BancWest Corporation, is a subsidiary of BNP Paribas, among the six strongest banks in the world, according to Standard & Poor's.
