Tennis: ATP expansion

The ATP Tour is extending its reach further into Asia with a new tournament in Vietnam, organisers announced yesterday.

The Ho Chi Minh City event will be held from September 25-October 1, making it the sixth ATP tournament to join the Tour.

The others are the Chennai Open in India, the China Open in Beijing, the Thailand Open in Bangkok, the Japan Open in Tokyo and the prestigious end-of-season Masters Cup, which will be held once again in Shanghai.

Next year there will be a total of 64 tournaments on the Tour, including 24 on clay, 18 on hard courts, five on grass and 17 to be played indoors.