Nottingham to host pre-Wimbledon grass-court event from 2015

Nottingham will host a pre-Wimbledon tournament from 2015, the Women's Tennis Association has announced.

An extra week will be added to the grass-court season in 2015, leading to a three-week gap between the French Open and Wimbledon.
Nottingham will become the WTA's fourth official grass court warm-up event for the All England Tennis Championships.

Nottingham Open, 1995-2008

Ivo Karlovic, Richard Gasquet, Jonas Bjorkman and Greg Rusedski were all two-times winners of the old Nottingham event.

Birmingham, Eastbourne and the Dutch city of s'Hertogenbosch currently host the other tournaments.

The Nottingham Open, a men's event held at the city's tennis centre, folded in 2008 after 14 years as a warm-up tournament.
"There is now a three-week gap between the French Open and Wimbledon to allow a longer and more significant grass court season," said Philip Brook, Wimbledon chairman.
"I wish to thank the WTA and all the parties concerned for their commitment and support in bringing this exciting prospect to fruition from 2015."