Sister act ups the stakes in quality women’s field in Dubai

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  • For the first time since 2009, Serena and Venus Williams will both be present in the Dubai draw, which received a major boost when the American sister act accepted wildcards into this week’s Premier event.

    A mixture of injury and illness have prevented the pair from participating in the tournament in the intervening years.

    Venus suffered from a series of problems before she was diagnosed with an energy-sapping autoimmune disease called Sjögren’s syndrome at the end of 2011, while Serena was due to appear in last year’s event but was forced to withdraw moments before her second round clash with Marion Bartoli, citing a back injury.

    But they’re both back in the UAE, albeit in different physical states.

    Venus is coming off a strong week in Doha, where she went down fighting in a final set tie-break to world No6 Petra Kvitova, while Serena is back on tour for the first time since her shock fourth round loss to Ana Ivanovic at the Australian Open last month.

    The younger Williams sister, and world No1, has been nursing a back injury since Melbourne, but her presence in Dubai is a good sign that she’s ready to play again. And Venus says it’s thanks to her that Serena will be in action at the Aviation Club this week.

    “I totally want to take all the credit for Serena coming here – I twisted her arm really hard,” joked Venus at the draw ceremony earlier this week.

    Serena has a bye in the first round and awaits world No23 Ekaterina Makarova or Alisa Kleybanova in round two, while Venus opens her campaign against Russia’s Elena Vesnina.

    No3 seed and defending champion Kvitova could be waiting for Serena in the semi-finals if the pair can see off the competition up to that stage. The Czech former Wimbledon champion lost in the quarter-finals to Jelena Jankovic in Doha last week but is looking forward to playing well on the Dubai courts, which she says are not too fast, nor too slow, which makes for perfect playing conditions.

    “For sure I have a lot of nice memories from Dubai last year and it’s not only one,” says Kvitova.

    “The bigger one is after winning the final of course.

    “I went there from Doha after playing great matches and my confidence was a little bit higher so that was great. I went there alone without my coach, without anyone, so I was by myself on the court.

    “I really played well. Every match that I played was great and the final was amazing for both of us, me and Sara (Errani). It was a big fight in the end. It was great and I’m looking forward to playing there again.”

    Meanwhile, 2011 champion Caroline Wozniacki is hoping she can turn around her slow start to 2014 with a good run in the Emirates. A second round loss in Sydney, a third round loss in Melbourne and an opening round defeat in Doha have left the Dane with a 3-3 win-loss record this season. But, having spent some time training in Dubai earlier this year, Wozniacki is looking to get back on track in what has become familiar territory for her.

    “I like playing in Dubai, it’s a great tournament,” said Wozniacki. “Since I didn’t do well in Doha, hopefully I can do well there.”

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