Young Croatian tennis hopefuls Mate Pavic and Borna Coric received invitations for the 24th Vegeta Croatia Open, which will be held in Umag from July 18 to July 28. Tournament director Vanja Bozickovic will announce the third invitation just before the tournament begins.

Last year, Mate Pavic completely fulfilled expectations of Umag tournament organizers with his sensational victory in the first round against Juan Carlos Ferrero, former  World No. 1 player and Umag champion. "Mate is a member of the Croatian Davis Cup team, and this year he has achieved the best ATP ranking in his career, 295th position. There was no doubt that he deserves an invitation for Umag," Bozickovic explained.

Currently number 6 on the junior rankings, 16-year old Borna Coric won a title this year at a Futures tournament in Great Britain, played on clay. He got to the semi-finals at Australian Open and Roland Garros, and recently reached the quarter-finals at Wimbledon. "Borna is one of the most promising Croatian juniors, the future of our tennis. His appearance at Umag will be a great experience for him and I'm convinced that playing in Umag will help with his career development," said Bozickovic.

Young Croatian tennis players will test their strength against truly impressive competition, lead by defender of title Marin Cilic and ninth-seeded Richard Gasquet. Former champions Alexandr Dolgopolov and Fernando Verdasco will also be returning, and debuting will be Polish player Jerzy Janowicz, a recent Wimbledon semi-finalist, and Frenchman Gaël Monfils, one of the most attractive players at the ATP Tour.