Andy Murray ready to ‘fly the flag for British tennis’ alongside Emma Raducanu at Abu Dhabi event

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Andy Murray has signed up for the Mubadala World Tennis Championship in Abu Dhabi, joining Emma Raducanu in the line-up for the exhibition tournament.

Former world No 1 Murray is a two-time champion at the Middle East event, having won the inaugural title in 2009 before winning a second trophy in 2015.

The three-time Grand Slam winner will feature in the men’s draw alongside 20-time major winner Rafael Nadal – who has won the exhibition tournement five times – as well as 2020 US Open winner Dominic Thiem, Andrey Rublev, Casper Ruud and Denis Shapovalov.

In the women’s event, US Open champion Emma Raducanu will take on Olympic gold medallist Belinda Bencic in a one-off match on December 16.

“I’ve got many happy memories of Abu Dhabi and I’m looking forward to returning,” Murray said.

“With Emma also playing on day one, we will be flying the flag for British tennis and looking to put on a strong display.”

Murray will face Thiem on December 16 and the winner will go on to face Nadal in the semi-final while Rublev will take on the winner of the Ruud-Shapovalov match in the other last-four encounter.

“Andy has a special place in Abu Dhabi as the first champion of this tournament back in 2009,” John Lickrish, CEO of Flash Entertainment, said.

“With his return completing our line-up, this year’s field is one of the strongest in the Championship’s history with the perfect blend of youth and experience, Abu Dhabi crowd favourites and exciting debutants. It’s shaping up to be a fantastic three-day festival on and off court.”

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