The 2018 ATP Challenger Tour season is underway, with a trio of tournaments - in Bangkok, Noumea and Playford - kicking off the new year. Many players are looking to carry the momentum from strong 2017 campaigns, while others are eyeing a fresh start as the calendar turns. Last year, 14 players broke into the Top 100 and will look to translate their Challenger success to the ATP World Tour. A total of 33 others tasted victory for the first time and are hoping to continue to plot their ascents up the ATP Rankings. New opportunities await the stars of tomorrow, as the sun rises on 2018. Who will shine in the new year? We look at the players poised...
Entering the US Open, Italy's Stefano Travaglia had won 274 matches in his pro career. None at the tour-level and none over Top 50 opposition, with just 12 coming on hard courts. There is a first for everything. Travaglia's fortunes changed in flash at one of the biggest stages in the game, streaking into the main draw last week with a trio of straight-set qualifying wins. Then, the breakthrough arrived. A gritty 6-4, 7-6(8), 3-6, 6-0 victory over 22nd-seed Fabio Fognini on Wednesday afternoon. The Italian stunned his countryman in two hours and 27 minutes behind eight breaks from 18 chances, seizing the opportunity on a packed Court 11. "Today was the best win of my career and the first...
Six years is a long time in any sport, but for Stefano Travaglia it has been a period of doubt, rebuilding and sacrifice. Back in 2011, Travaglia suffered a career-threatening accident, when he fell down a flight of stairs. In an attempt to halt his fall, the Italian reached out with his right arm, but he crashed through a pane of glass. For a right-hander on the court this was particularly disastrous, after the glass sliced between his wrist and elbow. As a result, he suffered nerve and tendon damage, losing feeling in three fingers, which prompted nine months of rehabilitation on the sidelines. Despite the severity of his injury, the 25 year was undeterred and has slowly but surely...
