ATP Tour Announces Dallas Open Tennis Tournament Coming In February 2022

DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM/AP) -- The Dallas Open will bring professional men's tennis to the city next year as the first ATP Tour event there since the circuit started in 1990.

The 7-foot former Dallas Mavericks Basketball Player Dirk Nowitzki teamed with 6' 10" tennis pro John Isner Wednesday to announce a new ATP Tour event.

The Dallas Open, is coming to the SMU Styslinger/Altec Tennis Complex next February 6 - 13. It is an ATP 250 event that is moving after being held in New York the past three years.

The ATP 250 is the only indoor tour-level event in the United States according to a release from the ATP Tour.

It will be the first time in 33 years that the ATP Tour has scheduled a Dallas stop. Once upon a time, the WCT finals was played here from 1971 to 1989.

It's been ten years since Dirk and the Dallas Mavericks won an NBA title. It's been two years since Nowitzki retired from basketball and now he focuses on his first sports love.

"Everybody knows my love for tennis" Nowitzki said. "I grew up playing tennis. So it was my first sport."

"It's a big deal for the city, for sure," said John Isner, a former Top 10 player and 2018 Wimbledon semifinalist who lives in Dallas and whose charity, the Isner Family Foundation, is a non-profit partner for the new tournament. "It's a big deal for me personally, because I get to play in my backyard here at Southern Methodist University, where I train."

ATP Chairman Andrea Gaudenzi said, "It's exciting to have ATP Tour tennis coming to Dallas, a city with such a rich sporting culture and strong roots in tennis. This is an important opportunity for tennis to continue engaging its passionate American fanbase and we look forward to watching the Dallas Open establish itself in its new home from next season."