Nadal, Alcaraz, Gauff… They will play an exhibition match for peace in Ukraine before the Australian Open

Tennis is mobilizing. In celebration of the upcoming Australian Open (January 16-29), the Australian Tennis Federation announced in a press release on Wednesday that it would hold a charity match at the Rod Laver Arena on Wednesday January 11, just days before the launch of the first tournament of the Grand Slam of the Year. The exhibition entitled “Tennis Plays for Peace” will aim to finance part of the humanitarian efforts of the Australian branch of UNICEF in Ukraine, while war has raged there for more than ten months now. For the occasion, Rafael Nadal, Carlos Alcaraz or Cori Gauff will exchange a few balls.

“Tennis is a truly global sport with an international community of players who regularly come together to help. Through this event, the tennis community can offer hands-on assistance through fundraising. It also shows its support for the victims of war. Looking forward to a spectacular night of tennis and entertainment, this is a wonderful opportunity to come together to raise much needed fundsAustralian Open director Craig Tiley explained in the press release.

Note that Maria Sakkari, Alexander Zverev, Frances Tiafoe and Alex de Minaur have also already confirmed their participation. Other players may answer the call in the coming days. For the occasion, two nonagenarians will also face each other at the Rod Laver Arena: the Ukrainian Leonid Stanislavskyi, from the Kharkiv region, and the Australian Henry Young, both 98, will compete in the “Battle of the Centurions”. The former is also considered by the Guinness Book of Records as the oldest tennis player in tennis.