Salah Tahlak reveals why top tennis players have made Dubai their second home

Salah Tahlak, COO of Dubai Duty Free and Tournament Director of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships. — Photo by Rituraj Borkakoty

Did you know that the majority of the world’s best tennis players who arrive in Dubai every year to play in the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships are also Dubai residents?

Serbian icon Novak Djokovic leads the list of elite players who hold UAE Golden Visa. But even before the UAE launched the Golden Visa programme, the Who’s Who of tennis made Dubai their second home.

It’s in Dubai that many of the world’s top players train during the winter break every year before they travel to Australia for the first Grand Slam of the tennis calendar.

Salah Tahlak, COO of Dubai Duty Free and Tournament Director of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, reveals why Dubai holds a special place in every star’s heart.

“There are many cities around the world, they say, ‘We do this, we have this’. But whatever Dubai says, Dubai delivers, Dubai offers everything. Dubai is a great city and it’s also the safest city in the world,” Tahlak told the Khaleej Times.

“That’s why we are very proud. The facilities in Dubai are top-class, everything is available here. You can own a house here. We have the best restaurants serving the best cuisines, even the cycling tracks by the beach are amazing, you won’t find such wonderful facilities anywhere else in the world.”

Then it’s Dubai’s central location, which offers a bridge between the East and the West, also attracts the globe-trotting tennis superstars.

“Of course, what also helps us is that we have the amazing Dubai Airport and the Emirates Airlines. Dubai Airport is connected to 256 airports around the world. You can travel anywhere, at any given time, through Dubai Airport, through Emirates Airline,” he said.

The 2024 edition of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, which gets under way on Sunday, has once again drawn the very best players, including Iga Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka, Coco Gauff, Elena Rybakina and Ons Jabeur.

The men’s tournament, which starts on February 25, will see Australian Open runner-up and former US Open champion Daniil Medvedev, world number five Andrey Rublev, Hubert Hurkacz and three-time Grand Slam champion and former world number one Andy Murray.

The Dubai Tennis Championships has also been voted as the best tournament outside of the Grand Slams by the players many times.

Tahlak says players love this event because Dubai offers the most comfortable environment for players to play in a tournament.

“The players also like Dubai and this tournament because the airport is just 10 minutes away from the tournament hotel,” he said.

“We take care of the players really well, we look after them, we look into the details, so it all keeps adding.”

This year, the WTA event in Dubai has been granted the permanent 1000 status, with the winner earning 1000 ranking points, making it one of the biggest tournaments in the world outside of the Grand Slams.

“From day one we deserved it. I think it has come at the right time. In fact, even before we became a 1000 event, we always had a great line-up,” he said.

The WTA event will complete 25 years next season, a big landmark for a tournament which was the first in the world to offer equal prize money for women.

“Still a year to go, we are focused on this tournament now. But yes, we will think of an idea to have special celebrations next year after we finish this. As you know, we always plan very early,” he said.

Tahlak is also delighted to see Tunisian trailblazer Ons Jabeur, the first Arab player in history to reach Grand Slam finals, back in the Dubai championships after missing the last edition due to an injury.

“I am very excited to see her back, she adds a flavour to the tournament. She is a great ambassador for the Arab world,” said Tahlak who, as the tournament director, supported Jabeur during the early days of her career with wild card entries into the premier competition in Dubai.

“She is a really good player, she is also a very good person off the court, very polite. She looks after herself very well. So she adds a lot to our tournament,” he added.

“Ons having a good tournament here will be good for her in terms of her new season, and it’s also good for the tournament because she is a crowd favourite.”