WTA tennis to return to Athens for first time in over 35 years as Maria Sakkari headlines homecoming

Thursday, 30 April 2026 at 09:42

The WTA have confirmed a new tournament has been added to the calendar with Athens in Greece set to host for the first time in over 35 years.

The WTA 250 Athens Open will take place the week of July 13 and will replace the Jiangxi Open in China at the Stadion Sports Center and will form part of the post Wimbledon slate.

It marks the first time a WTA event has been held in the city since 1990 and has a special meaning for a certain mother of the best female tennis player to come from the country as Maria Sakkari's mother Angeliki Kanellopoulou, contested the final.

Sakkari as expected has been a heavy part of this announcement as the leading Greek female tennis player and a trailblazer given that she has reached 10 WTA finals and is the highest ranked woman ever from her nation. She reached a career high of World No.3 and after a slump will hope to be on her way back when it comes around to July.

What Sakkari has dreamt of

"To be able to step on court at home and hear the Greek fans will be one of the highlights of my career. Athens is where I first picked up a tennis racket and dreamed of becoming a professional tennis player -- for a WTA tournament to come here will be a truly special moment and a great opportunity to showcase Greek tennis and inspire young players."

With this addition, the WTA will visit 27 different countries and territories highlighting the growth of the sport and hopefully something that no doubt Sakkari will champion will be a potential crop of rising talent who want to play tennis like her in the region.

Maria Sakkari - long the top talent gets a tournament in her home country.

Whether this is a one year license remains to be seen or whether it will be a permanent addition to the calendar with the reasons behind Jiangxi dropping off not being 100% known but presumably the hope will be that it grows into an option for top names in the weeks that follow Wimbledon heading towards the US and Canadian hard court swing.

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