ATP Shenzhen heralds an exciting phase in the Chinese tennis calendar as for the first time the country will play host to an ATP 250, 500 and Masters 1000 event.
ATP Shenzhen will kick off three successive weeks of premier tennis action as part of the prestigious Asian swing, following the final Grand Slam in US.
Shenzhen will make its debut in the ATP calendar as it replaces the Thailand Open in Bangkok and should provide an excellent platform for up-and-coming stars on the ATP Word Tour to make their mark ahead of the culmination in Shanghai with the Masters.
The Asian market has been an area of development for the ATP and the Longgang location already plays host to the WTA tour at the start of the year, so is very capable of running a high-quality tennis event.
In the past decade the season ending finale had its home in Shanghai (first in 2002, and then from 2005-2008) and has put tennis firmly on the Asian map.
The Shenzhen Longgang Tennis Centre uses outdoor hard courts and a 4,000 seat centre court, which uses Hawk-Eye.
Being the first event at the start of the Asian swing, Shenzhen should attract a strong field of players as the elite of the ATP try and fit in warm up events before making a strong showing at the Shanghai Masters and the prospect of having three tournaments in China should prove to be an incentive for players at the end of a long season.