Power players Rune and Draper snap up wildcards for UTS Grand Final in London

The organizers of UTS Seoul have announced the postponement of UTS Seoul. The next UTS event will therefore be the Grand Final, in London, from December 15 to 17, 2023, at ExCel London. 

Two of the biggest hitters in men’s tennis will be on the card at the thrilling season-ending UTS Grand Final in London next month after Danish star Holger Rune and rising Briton Jack Draper were both awarded wildcards into the eight-man field.

The pair will join Andrey “Rublo” Rublev, Casper “The Iceman” Ruud and Gael “La Monf” Monfils at the Grand Final, which takes place from December 15-17 at London’s ExCel, one of the UK’s leading international exhibition and conference centres.

China’s Yibing Wu, who won the UTS Los Angeles event earlier this summer, misses out due to a foot injury.

UTS is the world’s newest, most exciting, innovative tennis league, playing an entirely reinvented game format, which features four eight-minute quarters, one serve, bonus cards and just 15 seconds between points, not to mention live music.

World No 10 Rune – “The Viking” – is a Roland-Garros and Wimbledon quarter-finalist, and reached a new career-high ranking of No 4 in August. The 20-year-old picked up his fourth ATP Tour title in Munich this year, and also got to Masters 1000 finals in Monte-Carlo and Rome, defeating Novak Djokovic on the way.

The Viking will be playing UTS for a second time, having effectively started his pro career there in 2020, when he played one match – against Frenchman Corentin Moutet – as a 17-year-old ranked 827 in the world.

“My nickname is how I’m built, how I’m born, how my parents raised me,” Rune said. “I can promise fans I will fight until the end, like I always do, with lots of passion on the court.”

UTS debut for Draper

It will be a UTS debut for Draper, who reached the fourth round of the US Open in September. The 21-year-old does not yet have a nickname – and will be asking his fans to help him pick one out.

“Competing on home soil against some of the best players in the world will be a special experience for me,” Draper said. “The UTS is fun, disruptive, and I can’t wait to get on court. Let me know what you think my nickname should be?!”

Three more places in London are still up for grabs, with one more event to be played before London – UTS Seoul – which takes place from November 30 to December 3.

The winner in Seoul will automatically qualify for London along with the winners of the other two UTS events (LA and Frankfurt). They will be joined by the top three players in the race ranking, one of which will be Monfils, who already has enough points to be assured of his place.

The winner of the Grand Final will be the 2023 UTS World Champion. Tickets for UTS London are available. Connect to uts.live website for more information.