All Rights Reserved. There will be 16 men, 16 women, two knockout singles tournaments - all played in a digital representation of the Spanish capital's Manolo Santana Stadium. The event will be streamed on the Madrid Open's Facebook page and the platform's new gaming app. "Winning last year was the biggest title of my career so I have such great memories from Madrid. Fans will see the players in the corners of their screen, allowing them to watch their interaction as well as the match. Passport to RG, Day 11—Stars align for Novak, Stefanos, Sofia & Petra, The Rally: Thoughts on muted Roland Garros as we approach business end, Redemption of Stef: After US Open anguish, Tsitsipas thrives in Paris, In Paris, semifinalist Sofia Kenin put a “disaster” in Rome behind her. "Players individually can give their support and then there are initiatives like ours, where we are asking the players to give all the prize money to the fund," added Lopez. The Mutua Madrid Open Virtual Pro, the innovative and virtual online tournament that will pit the best players in the world against one another from their homes from 27 to 30 April in the Caja Mágica’s Manolo Santana Stadium, which has been recreated in exquisite detail in the videogame Tennis World Tour (Nacon Gaming), will be streamed on Facebook Gaming. "It is hard not to let my emotions go. During their Instagram chat last Monday, Murray and Nadal reminisced about the late nights they used to spend playing Pro Evolution Soccer. It’s the first virtual tournament. This means that everything that happens in the Tennis World Tour videogame will be enhanced by the reactions of the biggest ATP and WTA stars. Out-of-sync images and distorted sound are guaranteed to see exasperated viewers switch off. Day one's order of play at the Virtual Madrid Open. This week they are swapping their racquets for PlayStation 4 controllers, to play on the Tennis World Tour video game for the Madrid Open Virtual Pro titles. All Rights Reserved. Each champion will receive €150,000, to be distributed to players who are struggling financially due to the pandemic as per the winner’s discretion. The players will compete as their own Tennis World Tour characters, although some of the 32 entrants - including Murray - are not on the game. Presuming that is true and nobody is hiding considerable talent, it leaves an open field which mirrors the reality of unpredictable women's tournaments on the tour. That's the most difficult thing.". Just lost 15 points in a row against @BelindaBencic at @MutuaMadridOpen virtual open ??????? The MMOVP is, at a literal level, the first time we’ll see tennis competition on an international scale since early March. "Now I'm not sure if I will be able to, because I'd rather play a tennis match in Madrid than a computer game! Fellow Grand Slam champions Caroline Wozniacki and Bianca Andreescu compete in the women's event, as does British number one Johanna Konta, while Australian Open runner-up Dominic Thiem and ATP World Tour champion Stefanos Tsitsipas are among the men. © 2016 Mutua Madrid Open. When Rafael Nadal claimed during an Instagram chat with Andy Murray that he had only begun preparing that day for the upcoming virtual Madrid Open, both men broke into laughter. Streaming will start on Friday at 16.00 with the draws for the competition, which will be overseen by Andrea Levy (Madrid Department of Culture, Tourism and Sport), Gerard Tsobanian (CEO and president of the Mutua Madrid Open), Feliciano López (tournament director), Lars Graff (ATP supervisor) and Giulia Orlandi (WTA supervisor). The demanding Lopez says this is "not only for fun", any players thinking it is all a laugh might be shown up. 30 Abril – 9 Mayo 2021April 30th - May 9th 2021. Find your nearest court and learn the basics with our guide. And secondly, to help players who are struggling right now," Lopez, the ATP tour veteran who became the Madrid Open tournament director last year, told BBC Sport. To do so, the tournament will include a total purse of 300,000 euros in the two competitions (150,000 ATP and 150,000 WTA), from which the winners will be able to decide how much they donate to the tennis players currently suffering economically, and the Mutua Madrid Open Virtual Pro will donate a total of 50,000 euros to the Madrid Food Bank to help reduce the social impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. "The message we want to send to the fans is that the players are competing online because they can't compete on-site.". Bertens underlined her status as one of the best clay-courters on the women's tour by winning last year's Madrid Open - one of the leading WTA events outside of the Grand Slams and an important signpost towards the French Open - without dropping a set. Perhaps his chances of dominating a virtual tournament on his favoured surface - and being crowned the King of 'Clay-station' on Thursday - have received a considerable boost. Lopez has been impressed with the buy-in from the leading players, although not everyone has been bowled over by the idea. It is the first time a virtual tennis tournament has been contested solely by professional tour players. "Andy is one of the most competitive players in the game and I'm sure he will be one of the candidates to win this virtual event," said Lopez. Read about our approach to external linking. Group 4: Alexander Zverev, David Goffin, Karen Khachanov, Lucas Pouille, Group 1: Karolina Pliskova, Belinda Bencic, Fiona Ferro, Carla Suarez Navarro "It is more the skills from me than the skills of the character," said the Dutch world number seven. There were hiccups and gaffes during Thursday night’s first-round broadcast on ESPN, and it felt strange to longtime viewers. Digital expert Webedia, a global entertainment company with expertise in esports, is responsible for the technical side. "This idea is based on two things: firstly, to give something to the fans while they are at home and let them watch their favourite players. Gael Monfils was another of Lopez's hot tips - before the French world number nine withdrew on the eve of the tournament. Instead of returning to the Caja Magica, she will be defending the title in her living room at home in Breda in the Netherlands. "We are in a new situation for everyone. Two players will advance from each round-robin group; the finals will be held on Thursday, April 31. Once already the controller was almost flying across the room.". Alberto Fernandez, Webedia's head of esports, says the Madrid Open Virtual Pro represents one of the firm's biggest challenges. "Because of the situation we have to produce everything from home. If there was any event whose tournament director would tout its temporary move to a surface that doesn’t really exist at all, wouldn’t be Madrid? Smooth streaming of the players is key. "We are trying to make the virtual tournament as professional as we can. Mutua Madrid Open Virtual Pro—What it is; what it isn't; who's playing.