If you listen closely, you can hear the crunch of pristinely trimmed blades as players take to the grass courts of the Aegon Surbiton Trophy in suburban London this week. The grass-court season is here, and the fresh smell of carefully groomed lawns is in the air on the ATP Challenger Tour, with three weeks of tennis set to commence in England. The tournaments in Surbiton, Nottingham and Ilkley provide some of the more quaint and picturesque settings on the circuit, but which Challengers are held in the most scenic, breathtaking locales? We look at the 10 best, presented in alphabetical order by city... Kunming Challenger (Anning, China) One of two events in the Asia-Pacific region that feature on our...
A LOOK BACK Monterrey Open (Monterrey, Mexico): Fifth seed and American #NextGen star Ernesto Escobedo continued his outstanding second half of 2016 by winning his second ATP Challenger Tour title, defeating fellow American and third seed Denis Kudla, 6-4, 6-4. Ernesto is the 14th #NextGen winner of the year and only the second (joining Frances Tiafoe) to win multiple titles. Escobedo was ranked outside the Top 500 of the Emirates ATP Rankings when he competed last year in Monterrey, but is now projected to move up to No. 129 on Monday. Tashkent Challenger (Tashkent, Uzbekistan): Fifth seed Konstantin Kravchuk of Russia won the biggest title of his career by defeating seventh seed and local favourite Denis Istomin, 7-5, 6-4. Kravchuk...
The $100,000 ATP Challenger Tour event in Monterrey fittingly plays alongside an ATP Champions Tour event at the same venue this week, giving a glimpse into the future stars of the game that could one day join the ranks among the legends of the sport. The Monterrey Open made its debut on the calendar last year and made an immediate impact on the players for its attention to detail, scenic surroundings and caring tournament staff. It was named this June as one of the 2015 Challenger Tournaments of the Year, standing alongside well-established and prestigious events including the Sparkassen Open in Braunschweig and the Ethias Trophy in Mons. “It is an honour for us have been named one of the...
Challenger success can often serve as a defining moment for a player’s career. Just ask American #NextGen star Ernesto Escobedo. After hard-court results in the first half of 2016 that didn’t meet his high standards, the 20-year-old Californian broke through with his first ATP Challenger Tour title this July in Lexington, Kentucky. The win gave him the USTA Pro Circuit wild card into the US Open and he took advantage by winning his opening round match in New York City, then rode that momentum to his third Challenger final of the season this past month in Cary, North Carolina. Having started the year at No. 393 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, Escobedo now sits at a career-high ranking of No....
