MELBOURNE: Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic will use the Kooyong Classic starting Tuesday as a convenient emergency stop to gain much-needed match practice as the pair return from injury in time for the Australian Open.
Not since the glory days of Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras nearly two decades ago and more recently Roger Federer, has the long-time exhibition event hosted as distinguished a field.
The upcoming edition will feature five of the world’s top 10, including ATP Finals runner-up and two-time Kooyong champion David Goffin, Austrian Dominic Thiem, Croat Marin Cilic and Spain’s Pablo Carreno Busta.
Under the ad-hoc rules, late additions Nadal and Djokovic will be playing practice matches.
World number one Nadal, who missed the warm-up Brisbane International last week with a knee injury, is set for just one appearance on Tuesday when he faces France’s Richard Gasquet.
Djokovic, who hasn’t played competitively since a right elbow problem forced him to quit Wimbledon in the quarter-finals in July, is due on court on Wednesday to play Thiem.
“The addition of both Novak and Rafa changes our schedule and the way we will run the four days but that’s what Kooyong is all about, we are here to help the players get ready for the Open,” said tournament director Peter Johnston.
The women’s draw, now into a second season after being introduced in 2017, includes new Hopman Cup champion Belinda Bencic of Switzerland, German Andrea Petkovic, Aussie teen Destanee Aiava and young Chinese star Wang Xinyu.
Pat Cash, the 1987 Australian Open winner who now coaches American CoCo. Vandeweghe, serves as official ambassador for the event and said it would be good preparation for Djokovic and Nadal.
“Everyone will be watching Rafa’s legs and Novak’s arm,” he said.
“It can make for a very exciting week of tennis. Both guys had good preparation, they just suffered setbacks. But when those come within a couple of weeks from the Australian Open, it’s a bit of a worry.
“They have to be absolutely ready, players can be quite anxious about it all.”
The first day of play features four matches, with Nadal against Gasquet, Goffin facing Carreno Busta and wayward Australian Bernard Tomic taking on Japan’s Yoshihito Nishioka.
Among the women, young Australian Aiava plays Petkovic.
Nadal, Djokovic to test injuries at Kooyong
Nadal, Djokovic to test injuries at Kooyong
Saudi cultural identity on show at Winter Olympics fashion showcase
- Skier Rakan Alireza represents the Kingdom at event in Milan, modeling bespoke design by renowned Saudi fashion designer Alya Al-Salmi
- 17 National Olympic Committees participate in showcase and Saudis are sole representatives of the Arab world
MILAN: Ahead of the opening ceremony for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy, cross-country skier Rakan Alireza represented Team Saudi at an Olympic Winter Games Fashion Showcase hosted by the International Olympic Committee in Milan this week.
He modeled a bespoke design by renowned Saudi fashion designer Alya Al-Salmi at the event on Wednesday, which took place at Clubhouse 26, the official hospitality venue for the Games.
Seventeen National Olympic Committees participated in the showcase and the Saudis were the sole representatives of the Arab world.
The design of Alireza’s outfit was described as drawing inspiration from Saudi heritage, reinterpreted through a contemporary lens that seamlessly blends tradition with modern elegance, offering a visual narrative of national identity presented within an international context.
Regarded as one of Saudi Arabia’s most prominent fashion designers, Al-Salmi also created the outfits worn by team Saudi at the opening ceremony of the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.
The opening ceremony for the 2026 Olympic Winter Games is on Friday.
