The final piece of the Marshall Government’s $10 million Memorial Drive roof redevelopment has been lowered into place with official completion just weeks away, ahead of the inaugural Adelaide International in January.
The rebuild has helped attract yet another tennis legend to the $2 million tournament with former women’s world No.1 Venus Williams joining the already star-studded playing field for 2020.
Along with Williams, the line-up also includes current women’s world No.1, Ash Barty, men’s world No.2, Novak Djokovic and current Wimbledon champion Simona Halep.
Premier Steven Marshall said the eyes of the tennis world will be fixed on Memorial Drive in January next year.
“This tournament is going to be massive for South Australia, attracting national and international tennis fans to our state, creating jobs and boosting our economy” said the Premier.
“This is projected to inject millions into our state’s economy, will benefit local businesses and add to our state’s $7.6 billion visitor economy.
“To have players of the calibre of Novak Djokovic, Simona Halep, Ash Barty and now Venus Williams all coming to Adelaide, shows what a worthwhile investment the Memorial Drive roof is.
“This will put South Australia on the map as a must-visit destination for tennis fans next month, and adds to the incredible suite of events on offer in our state over the Summer.”
Minister for Recreation, Sport and Racing Corey Wingard said the line-up will inspire the next generation of tennis stars.
“This is such an exciting event for our state to be hosting, and we as a government are proud to be supporting tennis from a grassroots level, all the way through to the very best the world has to offer,” said the Minister.
“We’re expecting people to flock to Memorial Drive in droves next month, to see the very best in the world take to the court.
“This line-up is an amazing achievement by the event’s organisers, and I can’t wait to see some world-class tennis on display.”
The week-long WTA and ATP combined tournament will take place at Memorial Drive from Sunday 12 January to Saturday 18 January 2020.
