Italians have long celebrated a rich history in tennis. From the prestigious Internazionali BNL d'Italia, a staple on the ATP World Tour for more than 80 years, to its legendary superstars including Adriano Panatta and Nicola Pietrangeli, it’s safe to say that il Tricolore has always deserved its place among the flags of great tennis nations. But as the current generation of Italian stalwarts continues to age, the question remains: who will fly their proud flag in the future? Enter Matteo Berrettini. The 21-year-old Italian, who hails from Rome, has been surging on the ATP Challenger Tour over the past year, claiming his maiden title on home soil in San Benedetto in 2017 and a second crown in Bergamo in...
A LOOK BACK Challenger Banque Nationale de Drummondville (Drummondville, Canada): Denis Kudla is back in the winners' circle after nearly three years, claiming the trophy at the ATP Challenger Tour event in Drummondville on Sunday. Kudla marched to the title with a 6-0, 7-5 victory over France's Benjamin Bonzi, prevailing after just 64 minutes. The American converted five of six break opportunities to take his sixth Challenger crown and first since 2015. It has been a strong start to 2018 for Kudla, who kicked off his campaign with a second round run as a qualifier at the Australian Open. He would also reach the semi-finals at the $125,000 event in Dallas. With his title in Drummondville, he vaults 24 spots...
Players competing at this week’s ATP Challenger Tour event in Shenzhen stepped away from the court for a pair of off-site activities, sampling the local Chinese culture. Sweden's Andreas Siljestrom and Austria's Tristan-Samuel Weissborn went hiking in nearby Dashanbei Park, where they put their artistic skills to the test. The duo took a break from their trek to paint in front of the famous Taihe Tower. The tower was built in the Ming dynasty, with the name “Taihe” referring to a high level of harmony, such as the harmony within oneself. Later in the week, Marcel Granollers interacted with students at the local Gemdale International School. The Spaniard led a Q&A session, discussing his journey in professional tennis and providing advice...
(1) Hubert Hurkacz is Poland's surging #NextGenATP hope Projected to rise to a career-high in the Top 200 of the ATP Rankings on Monday, Hurkacz, who turned 21 last month, will be the youngest Polish player to do so since Jerzy Janowicz in 2011. A semi-finalist at this week's ATP Challenger Tour event in Shenzhen, China, he also appeared in his second final last week in Zhuhai. "In October, I was around the Top 400, so I was trying to move up the ATP Rankings. I played five tournaments in a row and did really well, reaching two quarter-finals and my first final. I'm happy that that put me in the qualies of the Australian Open. This helped me a...
