Leading Names Of Tennis World To Meet In Istanbul

ISTANBUL - The Third Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Istanbul Cup International Women`s Tennis Tournament will start in Istanbul on Saturday with the qualifying rounds.
Leading names of the tennis world such as Maria Sharapova of Russia, Elena Dementieva of Russia, Venus Williams of the United States, Patty Schnyder of Switzerland, Alona Bondarenko of Ukraine and Anna Lena Groenefeld of Germany will meet in Istanbul.
Sharapova, who will participate in the tournament as the first seeded player, will play her first match on May 22nd.
The official opening of the tournament will be held at the Topkapi Palace on May 21st.
During the opening, Sharapova, Dementieva, Schnyder and Williams will pose for photographers in dresses of the Ottoman sultans.
Williams won the first tournament in 2005 while the second tournament`s winner was Shahar Peer of Israel.