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Sports

Tuesday October 27, 2009

Asian tennis stars to fight it out with Russians in M'sia

KUALA LUMPUR: World No. 5 Elena Dementieva will join forces with fellow Russian Maria Kirilenko to take on two of Asia’s current tennis icons – Sania Mirza of India and Zheng Jie of China – in the Showdown of Champions at the Malawati Stadium in Shah Alam on Dec 19 and 20.

The third edition of the event is billed as a Russia versus Asia affair and marks a change by bringing in current top players on the WTA Tour.

Dementieva is the 2008 Beijing Olympic gold medallist and enjoys a good record in Asia. The event will help her prepare for the Hopman Cup in January where she is down to partner Igor Andreev.

Special gift: Kournikova handing over an autograph ball to the Director-General of Tourism Malaysia Datuk Mohammad Mirza at the launch in Pavilion, Kuala Lumpur, yesterday as Lawn Tennis Association of Malaysia president Datuk Abdul Razak Latiff looks on.

Kirilenko, currently ranked 61st in the world, is one of the most attractive tennis stars. on the planet. Mirza is one of the most recognised sport faces in India and she is now ranked at world No. 58.

Zheng Jie, who is ranked 35th in the world, has the distinction of becoming the first Chinese player to reach the semi-finals of a Grand Slam singles tournament, in Wimbledon last year.

Former top Russian player Anna Kournikova flew in from Miami to lend a touch of glamour to the launch of the event yesterday and she was excited to be the event ambassador.

“Tennis is a popular sport and people love to travel between countries and even continents to watch their favourite stars in action. I’m sure people will be rooting for Zheng Jie and Sania here,” said Kournikova, who was dressed in red baju kurung.

Kournikova, a former world junior champion, hung up her racquet in 2003 but still remains a popular figure in the world as illustrated by her stature as one of the top 10 favourite female sports stars in the United States in a recent poll.

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