Bautista Agut Ready To Defend His Trophy

January 31 2019 – DUBAI, UAE: Roberto Bautista Agut is eagerly looking forward to defending his title at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships next month after enjoying a hugely successful start to the new season.

The 2018 champion might well have been an unfamiliar name to many when he proudly hoisted the magnificent and unique silver dhow trophy last year. But that was because, while many title winners attract the spotlight, the mild-mannered Spaniard prefers to keep a low profile.

While many players need to shake off the rust at the start of a new season, Bautista Agut hits the ground running year after year. While some top names suffer early defeats in the first few weeks of the season, he collects titles – often by taking advantage of those top players who lack his sharpness when the new season gets underway.

For the last four years he has returned from his break in championship form, picking up the Auckland title in 2016, Chennai in 2017, Auckland again in 2018 when he overcame Juan Martin del Potro in the final and, most magnificently of all, in Doha last month where he claimed stunning victories over three-time Grand Slam winner Stan Wawrinka and one of the all-time greats and four-time Dubai champion Novak Djokovic before outlasting Tomas Berdych in a three-set final.

“I had a very good pre-season, I had almost two months at home,” he explained. “It is refreshing for [my team] and also for me after ten months travelling around the world. I think my coaches and me handle it well. I did good preparation. I work really hard at home. The best thing I wish is to feel good physically, mentally. And if this happens, I think I can get closer and get better in the rankings and why not be closer to top ten.”

When he first took up the game he didn’t enjoy it at all, but that is now firmly in the past.

“When I was a junior I was not happy with the life of a tennis player,” he admits. “I was getting frustrated about the results when I was not winning matches. My work now is a lot different from when I was starting to learn the game or when I was starting to play when I was a junior. I would say now I’m more focused on the intensity, on the mental things, on the physical work and tactics. I’m more professional.”

“Players from Spain have enjoyed great success at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships ever since it began, with Alex Corretja, Juan Carlos Ferrero and Rafael Nadal winning the title and Sergi Bruguera, Felix Mantilla, Albert Costa, David Ferrer, Fernando Verdasco and Feliciano Lopez all reaching the final,” said Colm McLoughlin, Executive Vice Chairman and CEO of Dubai Duty Free. “Roberto Bautista Agut is clearly a worthy name to put alongside so many of his outstanding compatriots.”

Bautista Agut is proud to have followed in the footsteps of so many of his countrymen, especially as he once idolised 2001 champion Ferrero and 1998 finalist Mantilla.

“Well, it’s a really good tournament, really special tournament for me in my schedule that means a lot, to win this trophy, no? I think the last winners are the best tennis players in the era. That makes me so happy,” he said.

Tournament Director Salah Tahlak enjoyed seeing Bautista Agut’s run to the title and said, “He played magnificently throughout the week and it was a pleasure to see him claim the biggest title of his career. He has continued to enjoy success elsewhere and his early results this season prove that he will once again be posing a threat to everyone he faces.”

Bautista Agut will face a formidable challenge as he defends his crown, with seven-time champion Roger Federer, Australian Open sensation Stefanos Tsitsipas, Dubai two-time finalist Berdych, former US Open champion Marin Cilic and Asian number one Kei Nishikori just some who will have an equal appetite for success.

Women’s Week

Before the men’s event gets underway, tennis fans can enjoy the very best that the WTA Tour can offer, including newly crowned Australian Open champion and world No. 1 Naomi Osaka, two-time Wimbledon champion and 2019 Australian Open runner-up Petra Kvitova, Dubai defending champion Elina Svitolina, reigning French Open champion Simona Halep, three-time Grand Slam winner Angelique Kerber, 2018 Australian Open winner Caroline Wozniacki and former French Open champion Garbiñe Muguruza.

The Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, which is owned and organised by Dubai Duty Free and held under the patronage of H. H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, begins with the WTA event which takes place between 17th and 23rd February, and is followed by the ATP event between 25th February and 2nd March.

Tickets are available online at www.dubaidutyfreetennischampionships.com and from the Stadium Box Office. For further information about the tournament please visit www.dubaidutyfreetennischampionships.com.