‘There are fifteen top-100 tennis players at an ATP Challenger…’. No, it isn’t the beginning of a silly joke about men’s tennis, but rather the incredible main draw of the ATP Premium Challenger Sardegna Open 2024.
Don’t feel FOMO if you’re scratching your head wondering what you have been doing instead of staying abreast with the introduction of Premium events in the ATP Challenger Tour. In fact, it was only in December 2022 (and to be precise on the 26th of December, what a brilliant strategy to release such an important transformation in your junior Tour the day half of the world is off celebrating Boxing Day!
Probably that’s why you missed it!) that the ATP announced the introduction of a new category of Challenger tournaments, the 175. Three new premium events to ‘be held during the second week of ATP Masters 1000 tournaments in Indian Wells, Rome, and Madrid’, says the ATP official press statement.
Thus, behold the Sardegna Open! Prize money €205,000, won by the Frenchman Ugo Humbert (46 75 64 to Laslo Djere) in its first 2023 edition. A slightly different edition though from the present one, if you think that in 2023, seed number 1 was Taro Nishioka, ranked 34, and seed number 2 Ben Shelton, ranked 38 at the time of the event.
So what brought Francis Tiafoe (current number 21 and top 10 in 2023) and Lorenzo Musetti (29, best ranking 15), alongside top 50 Mariano Navone (41) and Chris Eubanks (44) and top 100 Lorenzo Sonego (52), Marton Fucsovics (53), Nuno Borges (56), Luciano Darderi (60), Daniel Altmaier (61) and so on, to play this event?
Sardegna is for sure one of the most beautiful islands of the Mediterranean and the Tennis Club Cagliari is a truly lovely gem for tennis lovers. But my take is that the right answer lies in a far less Mediterranean place: the city of Paris and, more accurately, the XVI Arrondissement, where the majestic Roland Garros club is located and where the 2024 Olympic Games will be hosted.Â
In short, no one wants to miss the next Olympics and every opportunity is good to rustle up a few more points that can help you make it to Paris in August. And who would blame them?
So let’s in more detail what’s at stake for whom in this ATP 250 in disguise.
Top Players in Sardegna
Starting with simultaneously top seed and wildcard Frances Tiafoe, he is certainly the man to watch. The American had a great run on Houston’s clay, losing only to fellow countryman Ben Shelton in the third set of the final, but a very disappointing opening of the European leg of the clay season, losing to Pedro Chachin in the first round of the Madrid Masters.
The clay season couldn’t start worse for Frances, who missed Monte Carlo (like in ‘23), Barcelona (lost at the round of 16 in ‘23) and succeeded to perform worse than the previous year in Madrid, where in 2023 he lost at the second round to, guess, Pedro Cachin! I am sure Frances will hope to avoid one specific player in Rome…
Slightly different story for the Italian Lorenzo Musetti, seed number 2. His 2024 season never really took off and after the promising win against Taylor Fritz in the first round in Monte Carlo, the following results did not really match the expectations that always accompany Lorenzo around the Tour. If you add that Lorenzo is a very humoral player, genio e sregolatezza they’d say in Italy (genius and recklessness), much of his clay season (and olympic chances) could pass through his performance in Cagliari.
Other players to keep an eye on
Mariano Navone. He gained four positions in the race (+13 points) and in general had a great run in the South American leg of the Tour and recently lost to Holger Rune in Madrid, but only in the third set and a very close match.
Lorenzo Sonego. Out early from Madrid but losing to Jannik Sinner who outplayed Lorenzo, but just like Jannik could with almost any other player at the moment. Lorenzo will enjoy the support of the local crowd, he is aiming for a place at the Olympics as a double player with Sinner himself and has recently gained 20 points and 5 positions in the live race.
Finally, I would always keep my eyes on Seyboth Wild. His results are a rollercoaster, but if his tennis got off the bed with the right foot, then he’d be able to take out almost anyone on tour.Â
If you are based in Italy (or your IP address is), you can follow the Sardegna Open live for free on SuperTennis, the Italian Tennis Federation TV channel. And if you’re looking for some under-the-radar great tennis, I would highly recommend to do so.
Here is the quali and main draw of the event. Enjoy!
