Draw sets up potential Nadal-Wawrinka final

Former Wimbledon champion Pat Cash during the draw ceremony of the Mubadala World Tennis Championship at Yas Mall in Abu Dhabi on Saturday.

 A exciting final is in prospect with the likelihood of former world No.1 and Spanish ace Rafael Nadal going up against double Grand Slam winner Stan Wawrinka in the Mubadala World Tennis Championship over New Year's eve.
The official draw for the eighth installment of the winner-takes-all $250,000 tournament was made at the Yas Mall on Saturday and Nadal, a two-time winner of the event, could face Swiss World No.4 Wawrinka.
Both have got a bye to the second day of the Championship. The tournament runs from December 31 to January 2, 2016.
World No.4 Stan Wawrinka, and two-time Mubadala World Tennis Championship victor, Rafael Nadal. The Swiss star leads the pair's head to head battles in 2015 having overcome Nadal twice this year, both at quarter final stages and most recently at the BNP Paribas Masters earlier this month. Both players will be looking to start their 2016 campaign with a win in Abu Dhabi and signal to the world who is the dominant player going into the New Year.
Setting the tone of raw excitement from the start will be a stunning showdown between the pacy world No.7 David Ferrer, and Abu Dhabi crowd thriller, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.
Meanwhile, two tournament newcomers will play the second match of day one, with either Kevin Anderson, the hard-hitting South African who stands tall at a massive 6'8", or Milos Raonic, himself one of the most powerful and precise servers in the game, going through to play on day two.
Australian tennis legend and former Wimbledon champion Pat Cash, the tournament ambassador was on hand to make the draw with help from the public, as well as hosting a masterclass with youngsters from this year's Mubadala Tennis in Schools programme.
"The Mubadala World Tennis Championship always serves up some amazing action and memorable tennis for the Middle East. This competition has become renowned for its star-studded line-up and hard hitting tennis as a perfect campaign-opener for any player going into the New Year," said Cash.
"Every player likes to get their year underway with a good, solid performance and hopefully a win, so to do it here in Abu Dhabi against the best really helps build confidence for the year ahead.
"Players love coming and competing here in the UAE and although we see fierce competition on the court, there is a relaxed environment off it and players have the chance to spend time meeting fans and coaching youngsters. Overall it is a great experience for all, and a fantastic display of the sport we love at its best," he added.
Meanwhile, Tsonga will be looking to claim a win over world number seven, David Ferrer, who recently secured a milestone 25th ATP World Tour title at the Malaysian Open and who also beat the Frenchman at their last meeting in the semi-finals at Roland Garros.
james@khaleejtimes.com