As the calendar ticks to 2019, the new ATP Challenger Tour season is already underway across the globe. A fresh campaign signals a new year of promise for players plotting their ascent in the ATP Rankings. 

Opportunities abound in the month of January, with a total of 14 events on five continents. The longest-running of the group is the BNP Paribas de Nouvelle-Calédonie on the island paradise of Noumea, which celebrates its 16th anniversary this week. And the lone clay-court event is in Punta del Este, Uruguay. 

The tournaments are joined by a trio of new members of the Challenger family. The inaugural Cleveland Open celebrates its debut towards the end of the month, along with fellow first-time events in Orlando, USA and Da Nang, Vietnam.

A total of 14 tournaments on five continents highlight the January slate on the #ATPChallenger Tour.

✅ New events in Orlando ??, Da Nang ?? and Cleveland ??
✅ 16th edition of @ChallengerNCL in Noumea ??
✅ 13th edition of @openderennes in Rennes ?? pic.twitter.com/0UJWZe1TQ5

— ATP Challenger Tour (@ATPChallenger) December 31, 2018

After a long hiatus, professional tennis is back in Cleveland. It has been 34 years since the ATP Tour last held a tournament in the bustling city in northern Ohio. Located on the shores of Lake Erie, the manufacturing metropolis is also home to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and multiple sports franchises. 

While the state of Ohio has enjoyed plenty of world-class tennis over the years, with Cincinnati hosting a prestigious ATP Masters 1000 event (Western & Southern Open) and the campus of Ohio State University welcoming the Columbus Challenger since 2015, the city of Cleveland is back on the scene for the first time in more than three decades. When Brad Gilbert lifted the trophy at the 1985 Society Bank Tennis Classic, it marked the conclusion of the city’s 11-year stay on the ATP Tour.

“Cincinnati is of course the big tournament in the Midwest, but it’s nice that Cleveland has a Challenger,” Gilbert told ATPWorldTour.com. “There are a lot more Challengers in the U.S. now, which is great. It’s good for a lot of young players wanting to play many pro tournaments. 

“I remember when I played in Cleveland it was held at the old Harold T. Clark courts. It was in the most obscure place, right across from a military airport. But I usually did well in those kinds of tournaments. I actually also won in nearby Columbus the year before. I remember it was super windy and right on the lake. And there were train tracks there as well and you’d hear the freights traveling by. You’d hear trains and planes all the time, but it worked for me. And Ohio fans are so passionate. I’ve been to Cincinnati nearly every year since 1985 and the tournament has massively improved. People travel from all over the country to come there.”

Tennis legends Ken Rosewall (1973 champ), Ilie Nastase (1979 finalist) and Guillermo Vilas (1980 semi-finalist) also competed at the former Cleveland tournament.

Now, Cleveland is back. With a Challenger 90 tournament slated for the last week in January, the indoor facility at the Cleveland Racquet Club will welcome world-class tennis for the first time. Considering that snow and wind are mid-winter staples of the city by the lake, the venue’s 10 indoor plexicushion courts will be put to good use.

The Cleveland Racquet Club dates back to May 1969, when a 26-acre site was purchased in the eastern suburb of Pepper Pike. The facility opened its doors a year later and has since expanded to include a total of 24 tennis courts, also featuring a dozen outdoor clay courts.

The tournament is already looking to become an integral part of the entire region, organising a wild card competition held across four locations in the midwest United States. Aspiring pros are competing in four cities – Indianapolis, Cincinnati, Kansas City and Cleveland – with the hope of securing a main draw berth into the big show at the end of the month. The winner of each location will battle in a four-man playoff for the coveted wild card.

The inaugural Cleveland Open is set to run from 28 January to 3 February.

Kevin Anderson has not let slip the momentum of his career-best 2018 ATP Tour season, beating No. 7 seed Jaume Munar 6-3, 6-3 on Thursday to reach the semi-finals of the Tata Open Maharashtra for the second year in a row.

“Firstly, I’m happy with the way I played today. I thought I did a really good job creating opportunities and taking them, so definitely felt good out there,” Anderson said. “I’m happy with the way I’m playing and I have to come out and focus on what I do best and if I do that I’m going to give myself the best chance of getting through.”

The South African began his 2018 campaign with a run to the championship match in Pune, losing to French veteran Gilles Simon in the title match. But Anderson, who qualified for the Nitto ATP Finals for the first time last year, hopes to take a step further in India this time around. He will get a chance to avenge that championship match defeat, as the World No. 6 will face Simon in the semi-finals.

Anderson, the top seed, was opportunistic in the quarter-finals against Munar, seizing all four of the break points he earned. With the help of 14 aces and only losing six first-service points, Anderson was only broken once. However, he was still impressed with Munar, who qualified for the 2018 Next Gen ATP Finals.

“Haven’t seen him play before, really. What struck me the most was his attitude. I thought he competed really well throughout the whole match, even when I started getting ahead, he was in it every game, so I think that’s a huge positive,” Anderson said. “I think he’s definitely an exciting player to watch and definitely keep your eyes out for him.”

While Munar is on the rise, Simon has been a mainstay on the ATP Tour for years, and the Frenchman beat his compatriot, fifth seed Benoit Paire, 3-6, 7-6(4), 6-4. Simon was in danger of seeing his title defence come to an end when Paire served for the match at 5-4 in the second set, but the third seed pulled through to reach the last four after two hours and 19 minutes. Anderson leads their FedEx ATP Head2Head series 3-1.

In the other semi-final, Ivo Karlovic will have a chance to make history. The Croat, who is 39 years old, became the oldest tour-level semi-finalist since Jimmy Connors at 1993 San Francisco by beating Ernests Gulbis 7-6(5), 7-6(5). Karlovic, who has not been broken all week in Pune, can become the oldest finalist on record since 42-year-old Ken Rosewall in 1977 when he faces Steve Darcis.

The Belgian, who missed the entire 2018 season, became the first unranked tour-level semi-finalist in ATP Tour history (since 1990) when he defeated fourth seed Malek Jaziri 7-5, 6-2 in 93 minutes. Karlovic won his only previous FedEx ATP Head2Head meeting against Darcis in straight sets 10 years ago at Wimbledon.

Novak Djokovic was made to work hard once more at the Qatar Exxon Mobil Open on Thursday as the World No. 1 fought back from a set down for the second day running. Twenty-four hours after a comeback win over Marton Fucsovics, the 2016 and 2017 champion knocked out fifth-seeded Georgian Nikoloz Basilashvili 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.

Djokovic, who clinched year-end No. 1 in the ATP Rankings for the fifth time last season, will next challenge seventh-seeded Spaniard Roberto-Bautista Agut for a place in Saturday’s final. Djokovic leads Bautista Agut 7-1 in the FedEx ATP Head2Head series.

“I thought Basilashvili was playing terrific from the beginning. I expected him to,” said Djokovic on court of the Georgian, who won his first two ATP Tour titles in 2018, both at ATP 500 events. “I knew that he’s playing probably the tennis of his life in the past 10 months, and he’s definitely one of the greatest hitters in the game.”

Are You In? Subscribe To Get Tournament Updates In Your Inbox

Basilashvili made an immediate impact against the Serbian with his aggressive style of play, breaking in the first and fifth games en route to a 4-1 lead, prior to remaining cool under pressure with pinpoint accurate groundstroke winners.

Djokovic regrouped by absorbing the pressure to open up a 3-0 advantage in the second set. And as Basilashvili came close to recovering to 4-5, the Serbian gained the crowds support with scintillating defence. Both players put everything they had into long, punishing rallies at the start of the decider, which was highlighted by back-to-back service breaks. But Djokovic ultimately was too solid for the up-and-down Basilashvili, triumphing after one hour and 56 minutes. 

“I feel I have a gear or two up still. I can still get to one or two levels up, but I thought under the circumstances I managed to find a way to win against a player that is hitting the ball very fast and just being very aggressive. It’s hard to predict where the ball is going to go with a player like him,” Djokovic said. “So you kind of have to be alert at the same time when the chances present [themselves] to take control. Easier said than done because he was really hitting the ball fast from back of the court, so he was not giving me a lot of time to manipulate, maneuver from back of the court. So many times I found myself in defence. I managed to get a win, which is what matters.”

Djokovic has now won 13 consecutive matches in Doha, and is 15-1 overall at the tournament. The World No. 1, owner of 72 tour-level titles, is trying to lift a trophy for the 14th consecutive season, and continue the momentum of his impressive finish to 2018 in which he reached the final in his last five tournaments, winning three of them.

Seventh seed Roberto Bautista Agut also played with great poise from the baseline on Thursday to outlast 2008 finalist Stan Wawrinka 6-4, 6-4.

“I think Stan is a really good player. He is really a tough opponent to beat and we knew each other very well,” Bautista Agut said. “Today I was very consistent and played with a lot of rhythm. I think I did a very complete match.”

The Spaniard got off to strong starts by breaking Wawrinka in the first game and clinched the 48-minute opener on his fourth set point chance. He broke immediately at the start of the second set and put Wawrinka under pressure in the fifth and seventh games. At 5-4, Bautista Agut recovered from 15/40 to complete victory in one hour and 45 minutes.

Last year, the Spaniard lifted the biggest title of his career at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships (d. Pouille), an ATP 500-level tournament.

“Tough opponent for sure. He hasn’t dropped a set this week. He played great today against Stan. I saw the match. Just very consistent. Doesn’t miss much. In conditions like this, it’s quite suitable to him,” Djokovic said. “He gets to many balls and he makes you play. That’s his strength. He always puts an extra ball in the court.”

On the other half of the draw, Czech wild card Tomas Berdych, competing in his first tournament since the 2018 Fever-Tree Championships, beat Frenchman Pierre-Hugues Herbert 6-2, 6-4 in 71 minutes. It is Berdych’s first tour-level semi-final since February 2018 in Marseille, and he will play fourth seed Marco Cecchinato, who beat Dusan Lajovic 7-6(2), 6-2.

Did You Know?
Djokovic also competed in doubles on Thursday, falling short with brother Marko Djokovic in a Match Tie-break against David Goffin and Pierre-Hugues Herbert. Djokovic/Djokovic, who had lost their five previous matches together before this week, held three match points. Read Report

Fourth seeds Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury worked hard to reach the Brisbane International semi-finals on Thursday with a 6-2, 4-6, 10-8 victory over Austin Krajicek and Artem Sitak in 78 minutes. Ram and Salisbury came back from 3/6 down in the Match Tie-break.

The pair will next face Australian wild cards James Duckworth and Jordan Thompson, who were solid on serve in beating Robert Lindstedt and Milos Raonic 6-4, 7-5 in 67 minutes. Thompson partnered Thanasi Kokkinakis to the 2017 doubles crown (d. G. Muller/Querrey).

Marcus Daniell and Wesley Koolhof will challenge John Millman and John-Patrick Smith in the other semi-final at the ATP 250 hard-court tournament.

Are You In? Subscribe To Get Tournament Updates In Your Inbox

As the calendar flips to 2019, it signals a new era for players fighting to make their mark in professional tennis. The landscape is set for a significant transformation, with wholesale changes being implemented.

Not only are players poised to benefit from a more defined pathway from the bottom up, but also increased prize money across all levels. The new structure is designed to encourage a more efficient and streamlined progression from one stage to the next, with a larger number of players earning a greater amount of prize money.

Those competing at both the ATP 500 and ATP Masters 1000 levels will see a significantly greater prize money distribution in qualifying and the early rounds. This allocates more of the overall pot to the lower-ranked players, with an average increase of more than 80 per cent to those competing in qualifying at that level.

The financial benefits extend to the ATP Challenger Tour as well, improving the viability of fostering a professional career at the lower levels. In addition to overhauled prize money, players will incur less expenses with all Challengers providing hospitality to all main-draw players. As part of the enhancements, the ATP will provide travel grants for singles players ranked between No. 150-300 and for doubles players ranked between No. 75-150.

The revamped ATP Challenger Tour serves as a critical stage in the progression to the upper echelons of the sport. The changes also establish a clear progression path for all players by providing adequate stepping at each stage of a player’s development. After competing in the ITF Juniors circuit, players will test their abilities on the newly formed ITF World Tennis Tour (formerly known as Futures). And as their success increases, they will begin their professional careers in ATP Challenger Tour qualifying, Challenger main draw, ATP Tour and Grand Slam qualifying and ultimately the main draw of ATP Tour and Grand Slam events.

The new structure is designed to increase mobility for players who are winning matches, as well as reducing player stagnation in the ATP Rankings. The ranking points and prize money on offer will incentivise players to compete upwards through the system by entering tournaments reflective of their ranking.

“The opportunity to progress from the juniors through the correct pathway into the professional game is critical, and the changes implemented at the ATP Challenger Tour will bring significant enhancements to the overall professionalisation of the sport at that level,” said ATP Chief Player Officer Ross Hutchins.

With all tournaments at the level now featuring 48-player draws (increased from 32), there will be approximately 2,400 additional available professional job opportunities with prize money and hotel accommodation included at the first rung of professional tennis throughout the season. Tournaments will span seven days with qualifying held on Mondays, greatly assisting player scheduling. No longer will a player miss the chance to play qualifying in the coming week of a neighbouring Challenger event because he has made a deep run at a Challenger in the current week.

In total, the number of players in the ATP Rankings has decreased from 2,042 to 679 as the new ranking structure debuts this week. The remaining players will fall under the ITF World Tennis Ranking and compete at ITF events. The best at this level will eventually use their ITF ranking to play up and enter Challenger tournaments.

At lower-level Challengers, there will be four spots in the qualifying draw. Three will be reserved for players based on their ITF World Tennis Ranking plus one wild card. At the higher-level Challengers, there will be two spots reserved for players based on their ATP Ranking and two wild cards. In both instances, two players will advance from qualifying to the main draw.

Hutchins added, “These new changes to the ATP Challenger Tour and ATP Rankings have been carefully considered over a long period and I’m confident they will lead to a clearer, fairer pathway for players. We will of course continue to carefully measure job opportunities and rankings mobility under the new structure, along with ensuring the pathway into and up and down the rankings continues to serve the sport in an optimal way.”

In 2019, reduced ATP Rankings points will be offered at $25,000+H ITF events. No ATP Rankings points will be awarded at any ITF events from 2020 onwards.

The ATP is also working to increase the number of Challengers and the number of physiotherapists at events. Additional ATP staff will attend the tournaments, helping to educate younger players about life on the Tour.

In a move to enhance the status of the Challenger Tour, the ATP also has a goal to stream all matches from all events. This will increase exposure of players and tournaments at the level, shining a brighter light on those striving to establish a successful professional career.

Challenger Category & Prize Money Breakdown

View complete ATP Rankings points breakdown