Former champion Baghdatis to return to Sydney

MARCOS Baghdatis, the 2010 champion, returns to Sydney in January for the Apia International, which serves as a traditional warm-up event for the Australian Open, in the hope of claiming his second title Down Under.

“I won the event two years ago so I am just excited to go back there and feel the heat, get in some good matches and have some fun with the fans,” the Cypriot crowd favorite said.

“Sydney is definitely one of my favorite cities in the world and the fans there just love the sport and they are so relaxed and respectful. They always give me a lot of positive energy,” Baghdatis added.

On the ATP Tour side, tournament director Craig Watson said Baghdatis has been a great supporter of the Apia International Sydney over the years and remains one of the event’s most popular champions.

“I know Marcos was bitterly disappointed that he was unable to defend his title in 2011 because of injury so I expect him to be really determined when he arrives in Australia early in the new year,” Watson explained.

“He has been in great form recently, having made the final in Kuala Lumpur, so this will certainly be a good chance for him to win his fifth career title.”

Watson also said that more star players will be added to the field in the next few weeks: “We have a number of Top 20 players on our radar and we expect to be able to make some more exciting announcements very soon.”

In the meantime, world number. 55, Baghdatis will feature in Stockholm next week at the Stockholm Open where he won his third career title in 2009 after defeating Belgian Olivier Rochus in straight sets. 

However, in 2010, Baghdatis opted not to defend his title in the Swedish capital, instead taking part at the Kremlin Cup in Moscow , eventually losing in the final to Viktor Troicki of Serbia 6-3 4-6 3-6.

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.