Maharashtra Open likely to feature Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in 2019

What's the story?

In what will be excellent news for tennis fans in India, the biggest stars in the sport could be set to descend upon India in the Maharashtra Open in the 2019 edition. An official in the organizing team confirmed the development to Sportskeeda, stating that efforts are in full swing to bring the top players to the competition, including Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.

He said, "We are expecting some big names to come and we are working on bringing players from the Top 6 in the world rankings to play at the tournament."

Even if the iconic Swiss and Spanish duo does not feature, they are lining up some other major stars in the form of Dominic Thiem, David Goffin etc.

In case you didn't know

The Maharashtra Open is India's only ATP 250 event and has seen the likes of Nadal, Carlos Moya, Boris Becker and Stanislas Wawrinka earlier when it was played in Chennai and was called the Chennai Open.

The heart of the matter

The qualifiers of the competition this season will feature the likes of Benoit Paire, who has a career-high ranking of #18 and was voted the Comeback Player of the Year in 2015. Also featuring in the qualifying draw will be Spaniard Tommy Robredo, who has been ranked as high as #5 in 2006.

The main draw will feature four top 50 players - former US Open champion Marin Cilic, 2017 US Open finalist Kevin Anderson, Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut and Dutchman Robin Haase.

What's next?

The latest edition of the competition begins on January 1 and the next one could be even bigger and better if the likes of Federer and Nadal do make it.

Author's take

The participation of such big names in tournaments in India will only help boost the sport in the country and also give fans a chance to witness their heroes in action.