Desert island tennis - fans flock to Qatar to watch historic match



Fancy watching a tennis match on a desert island? Fans from around the world arrived in the bay of Doha in Qatar to mark the start of the Sony Ericsson Championships.

Top players including number-one-ranked Ana Ivanovic of Serbia and Elena Dementieva of Russia are scheduled to appear in the tournament, which begins on November 4.

It is part of the Sony Ericsson Women's Tennis Association (WTA) Tour 2008, which is staging the event for the first time in Doha.

A historic tennis match on a desert island in Qatar will mark the start of the Sony Ericsson Championships

Other players participating in the singles include Dinara Safina, Svetlana Kuznetsova, Serena Williams, Venus Williams and Vera Zvonareva.



Chasing ranking points is usually high on the agenda for players. But with Miss Ivanovic having already secured the year-ending world number one spot, the top players have expressed concern that new rules may be constraining the players.

A revamped playing schedule, the 2009 Roadmap calendar, was designed to create a more fan friendly and healthier system to more consistently deliver stars to top events and reduce withdrawals.

Number-one-ranked Ana Ivanovic (right) and Elena Dementieva will play in the tournament

Players will now need to compete in a fewer number of tournaments from next season. But the trade-off is that top-10 players could be suspended if they opt to miss any event designated as 'mandatory'.

They must compete in at least 10 of the 20 Premier events -- previously known as Tier I and II tournaments -- and the four grand slams.



All top 10 players must compete at Indian Wells, Miami, Madrid and Beijing.

The Women's Tennis Association is staging the event for the first time in Doha



