Fire caused by shrapnel hitting the Fujairah oil terminal in the United Arab Emirates. (AP) The ATP Challenger tournaments in Fujairah, United Arab Emirates, have been canceled due to ongoing tensions in the Middle East. The ATP Tour has pledged to meet the full cost of flying players out of the country after facing criticism for demanding €5,000 (Rs 5.36 lakh) for a chartered plane. In contrast, the prize money for the entire ATP Challenger 50 tournament – 32 singles players and 16 doubles teams – is $63,000 (€54,000; Rs 57.98 million), with the singles winner taking home just under $10,000 ($8,600; Rs 9.2 million).Events on the east coast of the United Arab Emirates, located in the Gulf of Oman, were scheduled for 2-8 March (Fujairah 1) and 9-15 March (Fujairah 2) but will not take place after the US-Israeli war against Iran has put the entire Persian Gulf region in danger.
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Despite the first strikes that occurred on Saturday (February 28), the tournament went ahead as planned on Monday (March 2). The most striking visuals came a day later when Belarus’ Daniil Ostapenkov and Japan’s Hayato Matsuoka rushed for cover in the middle of their second-round qualifying match. A woman, possibly a tournament official, announced, “Everyone inside the lounge please! Go, go, go!” Together with the players, children with balls and officials scrambled to safety.After much deliberation, the ATP canceled both tournaments. “Due to ongoing security concerns in the region, the ATP Challenger Tour events scheduled for this week and next week in Fujairah (Fujairah 2) have been cancelled,” the ATP said in a statement.“The safety and well-being of our players and tournament staff is our highest priority. Players remain in place and are fully supported, with accommodation and all immediate needs covered while further travel arrangements are reviewed,” it added.As if the decision to continue with the tournament under such conditions was not controversial enough, the ATP Tour approached players with the idea of potentially organizing a charter flight for registered players for €5,000 per person.
A large fire and plume of smoke can be seen after debris from a captured Iranian drone hit a Fujairah oil facility, according to authorities. (AP/PTI)
“ATP is potentially organizing a charter flight on Thursday, March 5 from Muscat. Depart at 3:00 p.m., journey to Milan, stopover in Egypt en route. Cost is 5,000 euros per person,” said the email seen by TimesofIndia.com.Under this plan, although the logistics were not entirely clear, players would have to make a three-hour journey from Fujairah to Muscat, Oman, which would require a border crossing.Two hours later, to make matters worse, another email stated that ATP does not directly organize such a flight. Instead, he would explore “available travel options with third-party providers.”The Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA) has joined the chorus calling for work by the ATP on player safety. It also said it would refund each player €2,500 for leaving the UAE. “We are taking this step to ensure that no player is forced to choose between their safety and financial stability,” it said in a statement.“We are calling on the ATP to join us in covering the remaining €2,500 per player and working together on solutions that put players first.”After a protest by players and the PTPA, the ATP Tour turned around and agreed to cover the cost of flying players out of the region and to safety.‘Heard the sounds of the jets’Ukraine’s Vladyslav Orlov said he heard jets during Tuesday’s second-round qualifying win over Ronit Karki.“When I was playing, I heard the sounds of jets flying back and forth,” Orlov said in a video posted on social media. “And there’s smoke coming up here next to the mountain, so it’s not very safe here right now.
Instargram Story by Ilya Ivashka who competed at the ATP Challenger event in Fujairah, United Arab Emirates. (Instagram)
Ilya Ivashka, who was due to play a qualifier on Wednesday, shared a screenshot of the email on Instagram with the caption: “no words needed @atptour” followed by clapping emoticons.Russia’s Marat Sharipov wrote on Instagram: “Thank you @atpchallenger for getting us a charter for JUST €5000! That’s a little more than the after-tax reward for winning the tournament, but I appreciate the gesture!”Japan’s Takuya Kamasaka posted a picture of the Fujairah oil terminal with the caption: “A detained drone fell on an oil rig and caused a fire. Today’s match has been cancelled. I want to go home safely…,” he wrote on Instagram.
Instagram Story by Japanese Takuya Kamasaka.
Finn Bass, who was originally scheduled to play in the tournament, was shocked that the tournament even started.“I was supposed to play there this week, can’t believe they went ahead and didn’t cancel the event. Crazy,” he wrote on X before the tournament was called off.The UAE later confirmed that shrapnel had landed at the Fujairah oil terminal near the Fujairah Tennis Country Club. It also said the armed forces intercepted the drone strike, but no casualties were reported.After the ATP 500 Dubai Tennis Championships played last week, players were also stranded due to closed airspace in the region. Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev are two of the prominent names that have been affected. Both have entered the Masters 1000 in Indian Wells, California, which starts on Wednesday (March 4). However, neither will play before Friday at the earliest.
