ISTANBUL
Swiss tennis player Roger Federer will participate in the TEB BNP Paribas Istanbul Open to be held between April 27 and May 3.
During a press conference at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Istanbul on Tuesday, it was announced that world number two player Federer would be coming to Istanbul to play in the tournament.
"Turkey is a country that I always wanted to visit. I think that you will come to see me in April and see you in Istanbul," Federer said in a video.
"Federer will contribute to Turkish tennis a lot by taking place in the tournament," said Turkish Tennis Federation President Cengiz Durmus. "The world's most valuable tennis players will be in Istanbul. If Federer comes, the best players will come too."
Emphasizing that Istanbul would be hosting an Association of Tennis Players, or ATP, event for the first time, the head of ATP Europe Laurent Delanney said, "We are holding tournaments in 62 different places. We were lacking Istanbul on the map. In several months, some of the best tennis players will be hosted by Istanbul"
The tournament will be held in the Koza World of Sports Arena, which boasts a capacity of 8,000 seats.
Tickets will be available on Thursday Feb. 19.
It is reported that the tickets for the weekend games will cost 80 Turkish liras ($32.6) while weekly tickets will vary from 30 Turkish liras ($12.2) to 50 Turkish liras ($20.3).
