Challengers/satellites etc

[_Tampie]

Speaking from his home in Monte Carlo, Ljubicic said he was excited to be playing in South Africa. “I had a tough year last year and although I started the year beating Andy Murray to win in Doha, won the grass court tile of Hertogenbosch and got to the finals in Zagreb, Rotterdam, I was not too happy with my final year end ranking even though I finished in the top 20 for the third consecutive season. I’m fired up for 2008 and coming to South Africa for my first visit and playing in the SAA Open in East London is the perfect start for what hopefully is going to turn out to be a fantastic year for me.”

Ian Smith, Tournament Director and CEO of SATA said that long hours of negotiations had taken place to secure Ljubicic for the event. “We were determined to bring a major star to the tournament this year. Our aim is to build the tournament each year into a bigger and better showcase and in order to do that we have to lure the world’s best players to South Africa.

“This is not an easy task and long hours are spent negotiating the right package for the top players. But the hard work has paid off and Ivan is a huge star with a respected game and his inclusion in the field will no doubt boost the event to the highest possible level” said Smith.


Een hoop poen dus.
En Thomas Johansson speelt er ook, dat is een goede vriend van hem.