The Aegon International is a major grass court tennis competition that features both singles and doubles events. Held annually at Eastbourne's Devonshire Park Lawn Tennis Club, the tournament is part of both the ATP World Tour and the WTA Tour. Generally thought of as a precursor to Wimbledon, which starts a week later, the Aegon International attracts an elite field, featuring some of the world's leading tennis professionals.

From 2009-2014, the Eastbourne courts hosted a combined women's and men's event, but returned to be a Ladies only event (with the men's competition returning to Nottingham) in 2015 and 2016. However, in 2017, the Eastbourne tournament returned to being a combined event.

Aegon International history

The very first Aegon International was held in 1974, when Chris Evert defeated Britain's Virginia Wade (although Wade got her revenge by winning the title the very next year). The women's tournament has taken a number of names over the years as sponsors have come and gone, but has always been a key stepping stone to success at Wimbledon. Numerous champions at Eastbourne have gone on to Grand slam success, so when you purchase Aegon International Tickets, you stand a good chance of watching a future Wimbledon winner (along with many other global greats).

Classic Eastbourne encounters

The Aegon International has seen some classic battles over the years. 1979 saw a titanic tussle between Evert and Martina Navratilova, when the final set went to 13-11 before Evert triumphed.

2007 saw another classic, when Justine Henin and Amelie Mauresmo could hardly be separated (though Henin prevailed after two tie breaks). It's the kind of venue that produces nail-biting contests on a regular basis, and often throws up new stars like 2015 winner Belinda Bencic. The women's doubles tournament has also produced some memorable occasions. In 2016, for instance, Darija Jurak and Anastasia Rodionova defeated the Taiwanese pair Chan Hao-ching and Chan Yung-jan in an epic conclusion.

Similar events to the Eastbourne International

If you intend to catch some elite grass court tennis, you might also want to purchase tickets for the Aegon Championships at Queen's which runs concurrently with the Aegon International and features the finest players from the men's game. Then there's Wimbledon – the world's most famous grass court tournament, and a unique festival of tennis.