More than 200 entries in 9 categories are to try their luck in the biggest annual tennis event in the Kingdom, the 34th BSF Desert Classic which opened yesterday at the InterContinental Hotel courts here.
A total cash pot of SR 60,000 plus gift certificates are up for grabs in the month-long tournament with daily matches scheduled
With the absence of some top Saudi players who are out of the Kingdom campaigning in the Davis Cup, upcoming players Fadi Zamjoui and Yasser Bouhyaya are seeded 1 and 2 respectively in the Class A singles. In the Class B category, Bandar Anazi and Filipino Jovel Espina are expected to meet in the finals, while Bandar Nahis and Mansour Rebdi are seeded 1 and 2 in the C singles category respectively.
In the Class A doubles, seeded 1 is the tandem of Yasser Bouhyaya and Zamjoui Bouhyaya, while the pair of Tawfiq Moafa and Mohammed Nageh is seeded No. 2.
In the C Category, the tandem of Elizalde Chin and Allan Frago is seeded no. 1, while A. Bitar and Abdurrahman is seeded no. 2. In the Over 45 Category, top seed Ronald Sediorasa will have to square it off with No. 2 seed Nour Abbas if they meet in the finals.
In the Under 12 category, Karim Price and Jaime Cerda are seeded No.1 and 2 . In Under 16, Rayan Amilhanja is seeded No. 1 and Anas Lufti Ishtia No. 2.
Banque Al-Saudi Al-Fransi is the major sponsor of the tournament and its support is in line with the efforts to promote tennis in Saudi Arabia. Power Horse is tournament co-sponsor.
Tournament Committee is headed by InterCon Recration Manager Mounir Melliti as chairman with Willie Biay tournament director and Marvin Espina tournament referee with Danny Guiao of Friday Morning Tennis Club (FMTC), Mark Jorolan, Del Serrano and Joey Salem as members.
34th BSF Desert Classic under way
