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Washington’s Citi Open will be permitted to admit full-capacity crowds for this summer’s event, headlined by 20-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal, under an agreement reached with city and federal officials.
A formal announcement is expected Thursday morning, along with information about remaining tickets for the ATP tournament, which will be held Aug. 2-8 at Rock Creek Park Tennis Center. Qualifying matches start July 31.
The Citi Open was canceled in 2020 amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Under plans for the tournament’s resumption this year, fan capacity was capped at 50 percent to comply with guidelines set by the National Park Service, which owns the property on which the Rock Creek Park Tennis Center sits. The complex has hosted the event for more than 50 years.
But in recent days, tournament executives have worked with the National Park Service and city officials to lift the attendance cap.
Rafael Nadal to play in Washington’s Citi Open for the first time
“We’re very excited that we have been given the approval by the National Park Service to go from a 50 percent cap to 100 percent,” said investor Mark Ein, who assumed management of the long-running tournament in 2019. “This has been in the works for a while, in partnership with the city and the park service. Everyone came together and decided this was the right thing to do.”
This year’s 48-player field is particularly strong, attracting not only Nadal but four of the eight players who reached Wimbledon’s quarterfinals this year: semifinalists Denis Shapovalov, 22, of Canada, and Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz, who ousted Roger Federer in straight sets in the quarterfinals, and quarterfinalists Felix Auger-Aliassime, 21, of Canada and Russia’s Karen Khachanov.
The field also includes 2019 Citi Open winner Nick Kyrgios, former Citi champions Milos Raonic and Kei Nishikori, and Hyattsville’s Frances Tiafoe, who equaled his career-best showing at Wimbledon this year in reaching the third round.
Even at full capacity, ticket availability is expected to be limited.
Unlike Wimbledon or the U.S. Open, which sell general admission grounds passes in addition to reserved stadium seating for the larger show courts, Ein said that the Citi Open isn’t permitted to admit more than roughly 7,500 per day. That limit is tied to the seating capacity of the main court, even though singles and doubles matches are contested contemporaneously on smaller courts at the complex throughout the week.
Nadal, 35, hasn’t competed since his semifinal loss to Novak Djokovic at the French Open in June.
He has chosen to return to match play at the Citi Open, with an eye toward tuning his hard-court game for the season’s final major, the U.S. Open, which starts Aug. 30. It’s the first time Nadal has entered the Citi Open.
When Djokovic claimed his sixth Wimbledon title earlier this month, he moved into a three-way with Nadal and Federer for most Grand Slam singles championships in men’s history at 20 apiece.
Amid the news of Nadal’s Citi Open debut, the tournament had an unprecedented demand for tickets beyond what was committed to longtime subscribers who renew week-long ticket packages each year, according to Ein.
Based on the expected 50 percent attendance cap, available tickets sold out quickly and tournament officials opened a waiting list that now tops 6,800, Ein said.
“We feel it’s important to honor that waiting list but are letting new people join it for access to full tournament tickets,” Ein said. “To provide greater access, we are saving a small number of single-session seats to make available next week.”
A formal announcement is expected Thursday morning, along with information about remaining tickets for the ATP tournament, which will be held Aug. 2-8 at Rock Creek Park Tennis Center. Qualifying matches start July 31.
The Citi Open was canceled in 2020 amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Under plans for the tournament’s resumption this year, fan capacity was capped at 50 percent to comply with guidelines set by the National Park Service, which owns the property on which the Rock Creek Park Tennis Center sits. The complex has hosted the event for more than 50 years.
But in recent days, tournament executives have worked with the National Park Service and city officials to lift the attendance cap.
Rafael Nadal to play in Washington’s Citi Open for the first time
“We’re very excited that we have been given the approval by the National Park Service to go from a 50 percent cap to 100 percent,” said investor Mark Ein, who assumed management of the long-running tournament in 2019. “This has been in the works for a while, in partnership with the city and the park service. Everyone came together and decided this was the right thing to do.”
This year’s 48-player field is particularly strong, attracting not only Nadal but four of the eight players who reached Wimbledon’s quarterfinals this year: semifinalists Denis Shapovalov, 22, of Canada, and Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz, who ousted Roger Federer in straight sets in the quarterfinals, and quarterfinalists Felix Auger-Aliassime, 21, of Canada and Russia’s Karen Khachanov.
The field also includes 2019 Citi Open winner Nick Kyrgios, former Citi champions Milos Raonic and Kei Nishikori, and Hyattsville’s Frances Tiafoe, who equaled his career-best showing at Wimbledon this year in reaching the third round.
Even at full capacity, ticket availability is expected to be limited.
Unlike Wimbledon or the U.S. Open, which sell general admission grounds passes in addition to reserved stadium seating for the larger show courts, Ein said that the Citi Open isn’t permitted to admit more than roughly 7,500 per day. That limit is tied to the seating capacity of the main court, even though singles and doubles matches are contested contemporaneously on smaller courts at the complex throughout the week.
Nadal, 35, hasn’t competed since his semifinal loss to Novak Djokovic at the French Open in June.
He has chosen to return to match play at the Citi Open, with an eye toward tuning his hard-court game for the season’s final major, the U.S. Open, which starts Aug. 30. It’s the first time Nadal has entered the Citi Open.
When Djokovic claimed his sixth Wimbledon title earlier this month, he moved into a three-way with Nadal and Federer for most Grand Slam singles championships in men’s history at 20 apiece.
Amid the news of Nadal’s Citi Open debut, the tournament had an unprecedented demand for tickets beyond what was committed to longtime subscribers who renew week-long ticket packages each year, according to Ein.
Based on the expected 50 percent attendance cap, available tickets sold out quickly and tournament officials opened a waiting list that now tops 6,800, Ein said.
“We feel it’s important to honor that waiting list but are letting new people join it for access to full tournament tickets,” Ein said. “To provide greater access, we are saving a small number of single-session seats to make available next week.”
