STANFORD, Calif. (www.mubadalasvc.com) – The Taube Family Center on the campus of Stanford University will be rocking on Wednesday night as World No. 1 and 17-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams takes the stage on her quest for a third Bank of the West Classic title. Her potential opponents for Session #6 will be revealed on Friday, July 25 after the conclusion of the Draw Ceremony.

Tickets for the 2014 Bank of the West Classic, which will be held July 28 – August 3 at the Taube Family Tennis Stadium on the campus of Stanford University, can be purchased online at www.mubadalasvc.com or by phone at 866-WTA-TIXS (866-982-8497).

The 32-year-old American owns 60 career WTA singles titles and although she did not compete in last year’s event, she took home the Bank of the West Classic trophy in 2011 and 2012. So far in 2014, Williams has won three titles - Brisbane, Miami and Rome. Her opponent to be named later will have a tough task in front of her as Williams has never lost before the quarterfinals in this event.

In other news, World No. 4 and 2014 Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova has withdrawn from the tournament due to a hamstring injury.

"I was really looking forward to making my debut at the Bank of the West Classic because I have heard such great things about the tournament, but unfortunately the hamstring injury I had through Wimbledon needs a little more time to recover. I will continue to work hard to be back in shape for the rest of the US Open Series. Sorry to the fans in Stanford that I won't be able to play there this year.” – Petra Kvitova

Overall, the Bank of the West player field remains loaded with the quality of a Grand Slam event with some of the world’s top players, such as 2012 Wimbledon finalist and World No. 5 Agnieszka Radwanska, World No. 8 Angelique Kerber, World No. 10 and two-time Grand Slam champion Victoria Azarenka, former French Open champion Ana Ivanovic, 2014 Australian Open finalist and defending Bank of the West Classic champion Dominika Cibulkova, World No. 18 Carla Suarez-Navarro, former US Open champion Sam Stosur and seven-time Grand Slam champion Venus Williams.

Individual session tickets for the opening round are on sale now and start as low as $30. If you plan on staying for an entire day of matches, Daily Double packages start at just $48.

The Bank of the West Classic also provides fans with multiple money-saving ticket packages that start as low as $190 for Night Session Packages, $255 for Weekend Packages and $595 for Full Week Packages. Groups of 15 or more can also receive discounts of up to 20%.

The Bank of the West Classic, a Premier WTA event, features a 28-player singles draw as well as a 16-team doubles draw. The event is owned and operated by IMG and serves as the opening women's event of the Emirates Airline US Open Series.

The list of past champions of the event reads like a Who's Who of women's tennis including Serena Williams, Lindsay Davenport, Billie Jean King, Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Andrea Jaeger, Monica Seles, Martina Hingis, Venus Williams and Kim Clijsters.

The Bank of the West Classic offers several different seat options with prices to fit everyone's budget so reserve your seats today. Qualifying will be held July 26-27 and is free to the public.

Log on to www.mubadalasvc.com for more information.

ABOUT THE BANK OF THE WEST CLASSIC: The Bank of the West Classic is the longest-running women-only professional tennis tournament in the world and is the first stop of the Emirates Airline US Open Series. Owned and operated by IMG, the WTA Premier event features a 28-player singles draw and a 16-team doubles draw with total prize money of $710,000. Held on Stanford University’s campus at Taube Family Tennis Stadium since 1997, former champions include: Billie Jean King, Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Andrea Jaeger, Monica Seles, Martina Hingis, Lindsay Davenport, Serena Williams, Venus Williams and Kim Clijsters.

ABOUT THE BANK OF THE WEST CLASSIC: Founded in 1874, $68 billion-asset Bank of the West (www.bankofthewest.com), Member FDIC and Equal Housing Lender, offers a wide range of personal, commercial, wealth management and international banking services. The bank operates more than 600 retail and commercial banking locations in 19 Western and Midwestern states. Bank of the West is a subsidiary of BNP Paribas, which has a presence in 80 countries with 190,000 employees.

About the Emirates Airline US Open Series: Now in its 11th season, the Emirates Airline US Open Series continues to serve as a true regular season of hard court tennis, linking eight summer tournaments to the US Open. Rafael Nadal and Serena Williams won the 2013 US Open and Emirates Airline US Open Series men’s and women’s titles, each earning a record tennis paycheck of $3.6 million. Roger Federer (2007) and Kim Clijsters (2005) also accomplished the feat of winning the Emirates Airline US Open Series and US Open singles title within the same year.

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