For the first time in Australian Open history the qualifying tournament for the ‘Happy Slam’ will not be held in the country.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the quarantine process those arriving in Australia have to go through, officials have sought the help of two other countries to stage their events. The Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex in Doha will be home to the men’s tournament. First opened in 1992, the venue usually holds the Qatar Open (ATP 250) which will not be taking place in 2021.
“It’s our pleasure to have the opportunity of hosting the qualifying rounds of the 2021 Australian Open, and we are glad to welcome all the participating players to Doha. We promise them an exceptional experience which will live up to Qatar’s globally recognised reputation as a major destination for world sports,” Karim Alami from the Qatari Tennis Federation said in a statement.
“Selecting Doha to host the 2021 Australian Open qualifiers due to coronavirus pandemic reflects the global trust in Qatar’s abilities, and we are not going to leave any stoned unturned in organising a world-class event,” he added.
Among those set to participate in the 128-player draw will be Spanish rising star Carlos Alcaraz who was recently named ATP Newcomer of the Year after winning three Challenger titles before his 18th birthday. Other youngsters set to play include Lorenzo Musetti and Sebastian Korda.
Also on the entry list are former top 20 players Ivo Karlovic, Ernests Gulbis and Viktor Troicki. There is a strong chance that this could be Troicki’s last time trying to qualify for the Grand Slam after being appointed the Davis Cup captain of Serbia.
“We are very grateful to our friends in Qatar for hosting the Australian Open 2021 men’s qualifying event in Doha,” Australian Open Tournament Director Craig Tiley said.
“Staging the AO qualifying event, and providing players with the opportunity to both earn prize money and win the chance to play Grand Slam tennis during this difficult time has been a key objective in all our planning.”
A full list of entrants is yet to be published by the organisers.
UAE for the women
As for the WTA players seeking a route into the Grand Slam main draw, they will be playing their qualifying rounds at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium and Complex in Dubai. As is currently stands all 16 seeds will be ranked in the world’s top 125.
Heading the field will be Spain’s Aliona Bolsova who is yet to play in the main draw of the Australian Open. Kaja Juvan, Oceane Dodin and Greet Minnen are the highest ranked players after Bolsova.
Also taking part will be a former Wimbledon finalist Eugenie Bouchard and 2019 US Open semi-finalist Tsvetana Pironkova. Timea Babos, Sara Errani and Timea Babos will also be playing.
“Tennis players are a regular here, both for training and time off, and they know what Dubai has to offer. We are sure they will be looking forward to the qualifying tournament here and giving off their best in a totally safe environment, with all the necessary COVID-19 precautions and protocols in place,” the Dubai Sports Council said in a statement.
Both the men’s and women’s tournaments will take place between January 10-13. A total of 16 main draw spots is up for grabs.
| Women’s qualifying entry list | |||
| Ranking | First Name | Last Name | Nation |
| 103 | Aliona | Bolsova | ESP |
| 104 | Kaja | Juvan | SLO |
| 107 | Oceane | Dodin | FRA |
| 110 | Greet | Minnen | BEL |
| 111 | Anna-Lena | Friedsam | GER |
| 113 | Katarzyna | Kawa | POL |
| 114 | Anna | Kalinskaya | RUS |
| 115 | Timea | Babos | HUN |
| 116 | Stefanie | Voegele | SUI |
| 118 | Katarina | Zavatska | UKR |
| 119 | Irina | Bara | ROU |
| 120 | Tereza | Martincova | CZE |
| 121 | Catherine | McNally | USA |
| 122 | Ysaline | Bonaventure | BEL |
| 124 | Vitalia | Diatchenko | RUS |
| 125 | Margarita | Gasparyan | RUS |
| 127 | Liudmila | Samsonova | RUS |
| 128 | Mayar | Sherif | EGY |
| 131 | Sara | Errani | ITA |
| 132 | Elisabetta | Cocciaretto | ITA |
| 133 | Catherine | Bellis | USA |
| 134 | Olga | Govortsova | BLR |
| 135 | Anna Karolina | Schmiedlova | SVK |
| 136 | Tsvetana | Pironkova | BUL |
| 137 | Mihaela | Buzarnescu | ROU |
| 138 | Viktorija | Golubic | SUI |
| 139 | Viktoriya | Tomova | BUL |
| 141 | Eugenie | Bouchard | CAN |
| 142 | Renata | Zarazua | MEX |
| 143 | Francesca | Di Lorenzo | USA |
| 144 | Monica | Niculescu | ROU |
| 145 | Natalia | Vikhlyantseva | RUS |
| 146 | Lesia | Tsurenko | UKR |
| 147 | Kristina | Kucova | SVK |
| 149 | Barbara | Haas | AUT |
| 150 | Harriet | Dart | GBR |
| 151 | Caroline | Dolehide | USA |
| 152 | Clara | Tauson | DEN |
| 153 | Xinyu | Wang | CHN |
| 154 | Usue Maitane | Arconada | USA |
| 155 | Kamilla | Rakhimova | RUS |
| 156 | Magdalena | Frech | POL |
| 157 | Leonie | Kung | SUI |
| 158 | Sachia | Vickery | USA |
| 158 SR | Kimberly | Birrell | AUS |
| 159 | Elena-Gabriela | Ruse | ROU |
| 160 | Kurumi | Nara | JPN |
| 161 | Whitney | Osuigwe | USA |
| 162 | Cristina | Bucsa | ESP |
| 163 | Anhelina | Kalinina | UKR |
| 165 | Lara | Arruabarrena | ESP |
| 167 | Giulia | Gatto-Monticone | ITA |
| 168 | Jaqueline | Cristian | ROU |
| 171 SR | Rebecca | Marino | CAN |
| 175 | Veronica | Cepede Royg | PAR |
| 176 | Lesley | Pattinama Kerkhove | NED |
| 177 | Allie | Kiick | USA |
| 178 | Cagla | Buyukakcay | TUR |
| 179 | Antonia | Lottner | GER |
| 180 | Ankita | Raina | IND |
| 181 | Varvara | Lepchenko | USA |
| 182 | Mayo | Hibi | JPN |
| 183 | Olga | Danilovic | SRB |
| 184 | Yuki | Naito | JPN |
| 185 | Xiaodi | You | CHN |
| 186 | Maria Camila | Osorio Serrano | COL |
| 187 | Chloe | Paquet | FRA |
| 189 | Martina | Di Giuseppe | ITA |
| 190 | Georgina | Garcia Perez | ESP |
| 191 | Natalija | Kostic | SRB |
| 192 | Mariam | Bolkvadze | GEO |
| 193 | Laura Ioana | Paar | ROU |
| 195 | Samantha | Murray Sharan | GBR |
| 196 | Marina | Melnikova | RUS |
| 197 | Indy | De Vroome | NED |
| 198 | Asia | Muhammad | USA |
| 199 | Bibiane | Schoofs | NED |
| 200 | Jia-Jing | Lu | CHN |
| 201 | Robin | Anderson | USA |
| 202 | Isabella | Shinikova | BUL |
| 203 | Rebecca | Sramkova | SVK |
| 204 | Na-Lae | Han | KOR |
| 205 | Gabriela | Talaba | ROU |
| 206 | Reka-Luca | Jani | HUN |
| 207 | Xinyun | Han | CHN |
| 208 | Daniela | Seguel | CHI |
| 208 SR | Karman | Thandi | IND |
| 209 | Jana | Fett | CRO |
| 210 | Elitsa | Kostova | BUL |
| 211 | Chihiro | Muramatsu | JPN |
| 212 | Pemra | Ozgen | TUR |
| 213 | Richel | Hogenkamp | NED |
| 216 | Anastasiya | Komardina | RUS |
| 217 | Ekaterine | Gorgodze | GEO |
| 218 | Claire | Liu | USA |
| 219 | Danielle | Lao | USA |
| 220 | Dalma | Galfi | HUN |
| 221 | Daria | Snigur | UKR |
| 222 | Maja | Chwalinska | POL |
| 223 | En-Shuo | Liang | TPE |
| 223 SR | Naiktha | Bains | GBR |
| 224 | Eva | Guerrero Alvarez | ESP |
| 225 | Valeria | Savinykh | RUS |
| 226 | Julia | Grabher | AUT |
| 227 | Victoria | Kan | RUS |
| 229 | Yue | Yuan | CHN |
| 230 | Tereza | Mrdeza | CRO |
| 231 | Aleksandra | Krunic | SRB |
| 232 | Hailey | Baptiste | USA |
| 233 | Nuria | Parrizas Diaz | ESP |
| 234 | Harmony | Tan | FRA |
| 235 | Ellen | Perez | AUS |
| 236 | Clara | Burel | FRA |
| 237 | Marie | Benoit | BEL |
| 238 | Kyoka | Okamura | JPN |
| 239 | Gabriela | Ce | BRA |
| 240 | Jovana | Jovic | SRB |
| 241 | Francesca | Jones | GBR |
| 243 | Dalila | Jakupovic | SLO |
