Mika Dagan-Fruchtman advances to finals in UAE tennis tournament

Tennis player Mika Dagan-Fruchtman, the first Israeli tennis player to receive an official invitation to participate in a ranking tournament in Dubai, qualified on Monday for the final. Dagan-Fruchtman will go on to face Dalma Gálfi of Hungary on Tuesday afternoon in the final of the Al Habtoor Challenge tournament, after defeating Mariam Bolkvadze of Georgia 5-7, 6-2 and 8-10 on Monday. The athlete is also the first Israeli tennis player to compete in the United Arab Emirates since its normalization agreement with Israel was signed. She received a free ticket to Dubai from the organizers of the Al Habtoor Challenge tournament, which is offering $100,000 in prize money and ranking points in the world round at stake. The tournament is taking place for the 23rd time in Dubai with the message: 'Bring the stars of tomorrow to Dubai today.' Dagan-Fruchtman, 17, is from Ra'anana and is an athlete for the National Tennis Academy. She is ranked among the top eight tennis players in Israel and among the top 200 in the world. She is joined by an official delegation from the Tennis and Education Centers in Israel to promote tennis cooperation between the two nations, including former tennis player Andy Ram, who received a special permit to compete at a tournament in the UAE in 2009 after international pressure following the refusal to grant tennis player Shahar Pe'er a visa for a women's tournament in Dubai. After Ram was given permission, the UAE stated that Israeli athletes who qualified for tournaments in the country would be given special permission to enter. Pe'er was given a permit the next year to participate in the Dubai tournament. The Al Habtoor Challenge tournament was founded by Khalaf Ahmad Al Habtoor, founding chairman of the Al Habtoor Group, a pro-Israel businessman from the UAE who called for peace with Israel well before the normalization agreement was signed. The tournament was founded to encourage the development of women's tennis in the Emirates.

Mika Dagan-Fruchtman advances to finals in UAE tennis tournament

Dagan-Fruchtman will go on to face Dalma Gálfi of Hungary on Tuesday afternoon in the finals of the Al Habtoor Challenge tournament.

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Mika Dagan-Fruchtman advances to finals in UAE tennis tournament

Dagan-Fruchtman will go on to face Dalma Gálfi of Hungary on Tuesday afternoon in the finals of the Al Habtoor Challenge tournament.

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