Days after National Girls and Women in Sports Day, Hadley Doyle and Jackie Nylander represented the SMU Women’s tennis team in the Dallas Open.
The inaugural Women’s Tennis Classic at the Dallas Open began with a matchup between U.S. Open finalist Madison Keys and former U.S. Open champion Sloane Stephens.
The weeklong tournament designates only one night and one primary match to feature the best female tennis players. The rest of the week features the men.
“It would be amazing to have something similar to what the guys have right now,” Nylander said.
The Dallas Open tournament takes place on SMU’s campus at the Styslinger/Altec Tennis Complex. The tournament is one of only 10 United States tournaments on the ATP Tour. The ATP Tour is also the only indoor championship in the United States.
Saturday night, Stephens and Keys kicked off the Dallas Open.
Originally the matchup was supposed to be between pro tennis players Venus Williams and Danielle Collins.
Stephens told tennis writer Blair Henley that she thinks they are going to have to ask for a women’s tournament after the match they had Saturday night.
Big crowd @DALOpenTennis for Women’s Tennis Classic between Sloane Stephens & Madison Keys!
Stream Free: https://t.co/Vj89zGG6NK pic.twitter.com/57ukKAhHPR
— TennisONE App (@TennisONEApp) February 5, 2023
SMU seniors Doyle and Nylander got the opportunity to play in a doubles match with Keys and Stephens promptly after their opening singles match.
Doyle and Stephens secured the win but their Dallas Open appearance stopped there.
Doyle/Stephens get the W! #DALOpen pic.twitter.com/UvkJXgNRHV
— TennisONE App (@TennisONEApp) February 5, 2023
“I think a women’s classic here in Dallas would be such a great opportunity for a lot of us as players,” Doyle said. “I know the men’s teams get to experience that with some wild cards so that would be super cool if we got the opportunity to play in that next year.”
SMU men’s tennis player Liam Krall was awarded a singles main draw wildcard to compete in the men’s tournament.
Krall will headline college night on Tuesday.
Until then, Doyle and Nylander look forward to next year when the Dallas Open returns for a chance to compete in a hopeful women’s tournament
The Dallas Open will be running from February 5-12. Tickets are available at dallasopen.com.
