Venus to join Serena at Bangalore

First it was the up gradation to Tier II, the Prize money, and confirmation of 10 ranked Serena Williams & now Bangalore Open gets even bigger with the confirmation from Venus Williams.

Bangalore, 4th February, 2008: First it was the up gradation to Tier II, the Prize money, and confirmation of 10 ranked Serena Williams & now Bangalore Open gets even bigger with the confirmation from Venus Williams.

The organizers of Bangalore Open, the Karnataka State Lawn Tennis Association (KSLTA) today announced that the 4 time & Reigning Wimbledon Champion, 6th ranked Venus Williams has confirmed participation in Bangalore Open 2008, the biggest tennis extravaganza in South & South East Asia.

California born 27 yr old Venus Williams is the Olympic medalist and has 14 Grand Slam titles to her credit out of which six are singles (4 Wimbledon and 2 U.S. Open), six women's doubles, and two mixed doubles titles. She would be joining her younger Sister Serena Williams at the Bangalore Open which gets underway at the KSLTA Tennis Stadium on the 3 Mar '08.

Announcing this today at a Press Conference Mr. Sunder Raju, Tournament Director and Hon. Secretary of KSLTA said, "This is surely an exciting time for tennis in India. Venus is a champion beyond comparison. I'm sure that Venus confirmation coupled with Serena will take tennis fans in India by storm. Tennis in India has entered a new phase with both these champion players going to enthrall the fans with some spectacular and powerful tennis." He went on to add "Venus is an extraordinary Champion and with great honour, I would like to welcome her to Bangalore. The Williams sisters, who transformed Women's Tennis, share 14 Grand Slam Singles titles between & 37 Million US dollars just in Prize money between them, would be the star attraction of Bangalore Open and I'm sure their presence would draw attention from the whole world. It is a great opportunity for budding Tennis players of India to watch these great champions closely & learn a lesson or two."

During 2007, Venus made one of the greatest comebacks in the history of Tennis by winning the Wimbledon and setting a record as the lowest Women's seed ever to win it. She was seeded 23. Venus has given something to Women's Tennis that will always remain indebted to her. She spearheaded a fight against Wimbledon & French Open to bring in equal prize money to Women. Her writing in �The Times' on the eve of 2006 Wimbledon was so strong that it moved the British Prime Minister Tony Blair and its Parliament to endorse her views. Under enormous pressure, Wimbledon announces equal prize money & French Open followed a day later. Williams herself commented, "Somewhere in the world a little girl is dreaming of holding a giant trophy in her hands and being viewed as an equal to boys who have similar dreams." She became the first Woman in the history of Tennis to win equal prize money at Wimbledon.

Announcing her participation, Venus Williams said, "I'm extremely excited about my first visit to India, a country which has always fascinated me. I'm looking forward to experiencing the Indian culture which I have read about over the years. Congratulations to the KSLTA, organizers for having this event upgraded to a Tier II and creating the opportunity for me to play in Bangalore. I have heard that Bangalore is a fantastic city and I am looking forward to seeing it firsthand and of course competing in the Bangalore Open. Sharing this experience with my sister, Serena, will make the experience even better."

Venus currently holds the record for the fastest serve ever recorded in a professional WTA tour main draw match (129 mph) and wears 36 singles Titles in her crown. She also launched her own clothing brand �ELEVEN' during 2007.

The Williams sisters together have created history in World Tennis that probably will take a long time to be broken. Career milestones with Serena include becoming the first duo in the Open Era to play each other in four straight Grand Slam singles finals; the first sisters to have each won a Grand Slam singles title; the first sisters to meet in a Tour final (1999 Miami, won by Venus); the first sisters to win Olympic gold in doubles (2000); and the first sisters in the 20th Century to win a Grand Slam doubles title together (they have achieved the feat six times).

ABOUT BANGALORE OPEN

The Bangalore Open will be held from 3 - 9 Mar '08 at the KSLTA Signature Kingfisher Stadium, Cubbon Park in Bangalore. The event has total prize money of US $600,000 and the winner would take home US $95,500 & 300 WTA points. The Bangalore Open was a Tier III event with prize money of $175,000 and has been upgraded to a Tier II event for the 2008 season. It is the third straight year a WTA Tour event is being organised by KSLTA.

About KSLTA

KSLTA is the Governing body of Tennis in Karnataka and is in the forefront in the country for Tennis Development. In recognition of KSLTA's Tennis development program, the All India Tennis Association (AITA) awarded the Best State Tennis Association to it during 2004. The KSLTA Tennis Stadium was originally created in 1976 to stage the First Davis Cup in Bangalore. The entire stadium was renovated fully to International Standards during October 2000 for conducting the ATP World Doubles Championship 2000 for the first time in South Asia. In appreciation of the organization, ATP allotted the Second ATP World Doubles Challenge Cup, which was held in Jan 2002.

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