The draw for the Sand Series Sand Series Pärnu will see local players pitted against top teams in both draws when play gets underway on Friday.

On the men’s side, last year’s runners-up André Baran and Nikita Burmakin open against Estonian qualifiers Ragnar Jung and Ivan Taaniel Sepp.

The second seeds have had a stellar season to date, picking up four titles as a team this year including two Sand Series in Ribeirão Preto and the Brasília Classic.

They were pipped to the post in a match tie break in Pärnu last year, losing out to Antomi Ramos and Michele Cappelletti. The defending champions have the standout tie of the draw, opening against former world No. 1s Marco Garavini and Luca Cramarossa.

The Italians are not afraid of big first round scalps this season, having scored one against Ramon Guedez and Carlos Vigon at the Gran Canaria Classic earlier this year. Guedez and Vigon have a tough opener themselves, against Gerard Rodriguez Querol and Gabriel Santos.

Santos had a memoral run to the BT400 Pure Beach final in March, winning back-to-back match tie breaks before a loss in another in the final to Nicolas Gianotti and Mattia Spoto.

Top seeds Gianotti and Spoto open against Luca Brasini and Filippo Buccioli and could face a Gran Canaria Classic final rematch against Doriano Beccaccioli and Tommaso Giovannini in the quarter-finals.

That thrilling encounter on the Playa de las Canteras saw Gianotti and Spoto race to a 7-0 lead and later a championship point in the match tie-break before falling 11-9. The pair didn’t spend long mulling in their defeat as they became World Champions for the first time the following week in Cessenatico, Italy.

Rafaella Miiller and Patricia Diaz also claimed World Championship glory in Italy and head to Pärnu as top seeds and the team to beat. They open against Yulia Lyndina and local Anette Maelt, before possibly facing former World Number One Maraike Biglmaier and fellow countrywoman Margarete Pelster.

Diaz and Miiller have picked up five titles this year including both the Gran Canaria and Brasilia Sand Series Classics.

Meanwhile the bottom half of the draw is loaded with intrigue, anchored by Giulia Gasparri and Sofia Cimatti in their first tournament together this year who could face another local team in Renate Hinno and Grete Roose in the second round. Also in their quarter are Veronica Casadei and Greta Giusti, one of the standout teams of the season, having finished runner-up at the Sand Series Ribeirao Preto as well as a third-placed finish at the World Championships.

They could face a tough second round match though - with a likely bout against Alice Grandi and Lola Barrau, title winners on the Beach Tennis World Tour earlier this year in Larnaca as well as reaching the quarter-finals at the World Championships.

The Sand Series Pärnu will feature live scoring from the first round as well as live streaming from the quarter-finals onwards with more information available on the tournament page.