Organizers of the season-ending Tennis Masters Cup reminded fans to order tickets for the tournament as soon as possible as 60 percent of the seats have already been sold.

The first phase of sales closed yesterday and were limited to ticket holders at last year's event. Those with 2005 receipts were offered a 40 percent discount for this year's event.

The price-cut was introduced to woo spectators disappointed by the number of withdrawals from the tournament last year. Five of the top eight ranked players in the world, including American Andre Agassi and Russian Marat Safin, withdraw either before or during the tournament due to injury or personal matters.

Only the top eight players in the world rankings qualify for the annual Tennis Masters Cup, which is to be held at suburban Qizhong Tennis Center. The weakened field, though a result of unfortunate timing and bad luck, drew many complaints from local tennis fans.

Single-day tickets for the November 12-19 tournament range from 100 yuan (US$12) to 1,380 yuan. Package deals cost between 2,200 yuan and 4,800 yuan.

(Shanghai Daily May 19, 2006)