2012 Sony Ericsson Open Qualifying Draws

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MIAMI, Fla. (www.sonyericssonopen.com) – A field of 48 men and 48 women will battle through two rounds of qualifying on Monday and Tuesday, March 19 and 20, for spots in the main draw of the 2012 Sony Ericsson Open.

Qualifying rounds are an opportunity for fans to scout upstart teenagers in the beginning of their professional careers—previous qualifiers at the Sony Ericsson Open have included Mardy Fish, Fernando Gonzalez, Vera Zvonerava, and Petra Kvitova—as well as a chance to watch crafty veterans, many recognizable from a decade or more of competing in ATP and WTA tournaments.

The top seed in women’s qualifying is 25-year-old Kateryna Bondarenko, the Ukrainian who made a run to the US Open quarterfinals in 2009.  She will take on Great Britain’s Naomi Broady and in the second round could face Croatian Mirjana Lucic, a semifinalist at Wimbledon way back in the Steffi Graf days of 1999. 

Indian player Sania Mirza, an entertaining personality on the tour who has recently shifted into a successful doubles expert, takes on current world No. 100 Irina Falconi.   Rising American Madison Keys, a 17-year-old local product from Boca Raton, faces Bulgaria’s Olga Govortsova, onetime ranked No. 35 in the world.   And Caroline Garcia, the French teenager who Andy Murray predicted will be number one in the world someday, goes up against Arantxa Rus, the Dutch player who eliminated Kim Clijsters in the second round of the 2011 French Open.

The men’s qualifying draw is topped by Edouard Roger-Vasselin, the Frenchman who won two ATP doubles titles this February and will face Alexander Kudryavtsev of Russia.  Spain’s Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, riding high after a second round defeat of world No. 4 Andy Murray just last week at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, CA, will meet Matteo Viola of Italy.   In a matchup of two Americans, 33-year-old tour mainstay Michael Russell, who made it through qualifying here last year, takes on 24-year-old Tim Smyczek, who has successfully qualified this season for main draws in San Jose and Delray Beach.

The day’s marquee match on paper is the contest between Igor Andreev, the Russian who reached a career best ranking of No. 18 in 2008, versus 34-year-old Arnaud Clement of France, once world No. 10 and a runner-up to Andre Agassi 11 years ago at the Australian Open.  Both men are ranked outside the top 100 right now, but their opening match Monday provides a chance for one to get back where he belongs.

ABOUT THE SONY ERICSSON OPEN: The 2012 Sony Ericsson Open will be played March 19-April 1 at the Tennis Center at Crandon Park in Miami. The two-week combined event, founded by Butch Buchholz in 1985, is owned and operated by IMG. The Sony Ericsson Open is one of nine ATP Masters 1000 Series events on the ATP calendar, a Premier Mandatory event on the WTA calendar, and features the top men's and women's tennis players in the world. In 2011 Novak Djokovic defeated Rafael Nadal for his second Sony Ericsson Open title, while Victoria Azarenka knocked off Maria Sharapova to capture her second title in Miami. For ticket information, call (305) 442-3367 or visit the website at www.SonyEricssonOpen.com.

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