29 June 2020 | Tennis West

Australia’s pro tennis players have the opportunity to compete for $450,000 prizemoney in a new domestic series that kicked off in Sydney over the weekend.

 

The UTR Pro Tennis Series will feature tournaments in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, starting in Sydney on Saturday 27 June, with Brisbane and Melbourne competitions getting underway on Monday 29 June, and Perth following on Tuesday 7 July.

 

“With so much of the tennis season still uncertain, our aim through the UTR Pro Tennis Series is to give as many of our athletes the chance to compete and, importantly, also earn prize money, after months of not being able to make their living playing the sport they have devoted their lives to,” Tennis Australia CEO Craig Tiley explained.

 

“Our team has put an enormous amount of time and effort into the planning of these events, and have worked closely with the authorities and tennis staff around the country on the ground to ensure they are run according to strict local biosecurity protocols.”

 

The first phase of the UTR Pro Tennis Series will run until August, with the possibility of extending further depending on the resumption of the global tours (ATP/WTA/ITF).

 

Event organisers have worked closely within government guidelines in each state to ensure physical distancing rules are in place, along with additional hygiene and safety precautions. On court personnel will be limited, with a chair umpire, minimal lines-people and no ballkids. Players will bring their own towels.

 

Some of WA”s most promising female players have made the trip interstate to compete in this new event series, including Storm Sanders, Maddison Inglis and Talia Gibson

 

The women’s field in Melbourne is led by WA’s Storm Sanders, who holds the top UTR ranking in that event. She will compete against the likes of Destanee Aiava, Belinda Woolcock, Ivana Popovic, Gabriella Da Silva-Fick and fellow WA compatriot, and rising star Talia Gibson.

 

The 25-year-old Sanders, who has a UTR of 12.48, resumed her singles career last October after a two-year break and will welcome the chance to draw on the work that continued through the tour shutdown.

 

“I’m trying to make the most of the time by setting little fitness goals, watching some of my recent match footage in both singles and doubles and trying to find ways to improve,” Sanders recently commented.

 

In the Brisbane tournament, Perth’s Maddison Inglis will aim to resume the strong form she demonstrated early in the 2020 season. Inglis claimed back-to-back Australian Pro Tour titles in Burnie and Perth in February to help achieve a UTR of 12.37.

 

Participating players in Round 1 of the Sydney, Melbourne & Brisbane events are listed below.

The Perth entry deadline for round 1 closes on Thursday 2 July. Player lists will be published once the deadline has closed.

 

The Perth Events Dates are as follows:

• Event 1 – Tuesday 7 July – Friday 10 July
• Event 2 – Sunday 19 July – Wednesday 22 July
• Event 3 – Friday 31 July – Monday 3 August

 

CITY	UTR Pro Tennis Series first events
SYDNEY	Men and Women Event 1 – 27 – 30 June
MELBOURNE	Men and Women Event 1 – 29 June – 2 July
BRISBANE	Men and Women Event 1 – 29 June – 2 July
ADELAIDE	Men Event 1- – 5 – 8 July
PERTH	Men Event 1 – 7 – 10 July

 

Players will enter using their Universal Tennis Rating (UTR), giving them an opportunity to compete locally and have their results count globally via the Universal Tennis Rating (UTR) system.

 

“We are excited to work with Tennis Australia to bring the UTR Pro Tennis Series to the country and provide an innovative way for professionals to compete close to home safely and have their results count on a global scale,” Universal Tennis Chairman and CEO Mark Leschly said.

“Every tennis player – from social and league players to pros – in Australia can use Universal Tennis to measure their competitive ability. Players who have participated in Tennis Australia comps and tournaments already have a UTR, and can view their rating and register for events on MyUTR.com for free.”

 

Live streaming and scores

All matches will be streamed for free via Playsight (you will need to register for a free account) https://web.playsight.com/facility/utr-pro-tennis-series/home

Matches will also be streamed on the Tennis Australia YouTube and Facebook Channel.

Match results and scores will be available via www.MyUTR.com

 

Scores & Results

Tournament information

Additional tournament information, order or plays, draws and results will be for each city via the following links (please note you will need to register for a free account to access all information).

• Brisbane: https://app.myutr.com/events/24199
• Sydney: https://app.myutr.com/events/24050
• Melbourne: https://app.myutr.com/events/24052
• Adelaide – https://app.myutr.com/events/24352
• Perth – https://app.myutr.com/events/24354?t=0

 

*Full UTR Pro Tennis Series calendar to be announced

 

Biosecurity, health and safety protocols:

• Daily health and temperature checks for all on-site personnel
• Physical distancing of 1.5 metres
• Minimal personnel on site including no fans and ballkids, reduced lines-people
• Additional hygiene practices and measures in place, including encouraging frequent handwashing and use of hand sanitiser
• Thorough cleaning practices, including between matches
• Players will tap racquet taps instead of shaking hands
• Separate player benches and players encouraged to change ends on opposite sides of the court
• Players advised to bring own towels, food and drinks
• Players to spend minimal time onsite and encouraged to arrive, play and depart, not use showers within the venue and limit their time in any communal area, all in accordance with the AIS Framework for Rebooting Sport.

 

What is a UTR?

Universal Tennis Rating (UTR) is an international tennis rating system that connects millions of tennis players around the world to help them find better matches locally. UTR reflects a player’s current skill level based on head-to-head match scores, and rates all players across age, gender and nationality on the same 16-point scale. Every player can have a UTR – from the pros to juniors to social tennis players.

 

 About Universal Tennis

The mission of Universal Tennis is to make tennis more affordable, accessible and fun for all players, regardless of age, gender, level and socioeconomic status. The UTR Engagement Platform is anchored by the Universal Tennis Rating (UTR) Powered by Oracle, the world’s most accurate singles and doubles tennis rating system; and provides the tools and solutions to make the Universal Tennis Rating relevant and valuable to players, coaches and organisers in their local domain. Universal Tennis is creating opportunities and pathways for players from all over the world, in all stages of life, to find better matches and unlock a more fun and flexible tennis experience. Watch our video and visit MyUTR.com to sign up, create or find your player profile, and join the global tennis community on UTR.