Dominic Thiem and Frances Tiafoe are the latest additions to the Red Bull Bassline event in Madrid.
The event is a special tie-break tennis tournament that will be held in Spain for the first time on April 25th as part of the curtain-raiser for the 2023 Madrid Open, which is one of the ATP 1000 clay-court events leading up to the Roland Garros.
Much like the tie-break tens event at the start of Indian Wells, this will be a one-night, knock-out tie-break tournament, taking place in the Caja Magica's iconic Arantxa Sánchez Vicario Stadium on the eve of the 2023 Madrid Open.
Last year's US Open semi-finalist Tiafoe and 2020 US Open champion Dominic Thiem will join the field this year at what promises to be an electric opener to Madrid's premier tennis event.
They join the likes of Feliciano Lopez, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Sebastian Korda, Martin Landaluce and recent ATP Masters 1000 winner in Monte Carlo, Andrey Rublev.
In contrast to the format of two week tournaments, the competition features a one-day format from the quarter-finals to the deciding match, with a total of seven matches played as tie-breaks.
There will be no chair umpire present, meaning the players will be responsible for making their own line calls in what will surely result in light-hearted and entertaining disputes.
A live DJ will provide further atmosphere between points, and will even play music while some of the points are being played, in a different, higher octane version of the sport we all know and love.
Frances Tiafoe in particular feels like a perfect fit for this type of event, as he frequently uses his showmanship to engage with the crowd and is a magnet for the lighter entertainment side of tennis.
In just its third instalment, the Red Bull Bassline Madrid exhibition event organisers will have been delighted to secure someone of Tiafoe's entertainment value, while there is also no shortage of tennis quality on show either.
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