Challenger Finals Preview: Lorenzi “The Goal Is To Reach 400 Wins”

Paolo Lorenzi claimed his 300th match win on the ATP Challenger Tour earlier this year, and the Italian says he is not slowing down in his quest to reach 400.

At 33 years old, Lorenzi, who won four titles in five finals in 2015, is one of eight players to feature in the season-ending ATP Challenger Tour Finals in Sao Paulo. One of the most dominant players on the circuit this year, he won a total of 42 matches and lifted trophies in Eskisehir (Turkey), Cortina (Italy), Pereira (Colombia) and Medellin (Colombia).

Born in Rome, the World No. 68 in the Emirates ATP Rankings believes that his strong performance this year is due to several factors, but especially that he had been able to stay healthy and put in a lot of work away from the court.

“I put in a lot of work before the start of the season, putting a lot of emphasis on the physical part and I believe that it has been the key to a good campaign,” Lorenzi told ATPWorldTour.com after his victory at the Seguros Bolívar Open de Pereira. “I am very happy to have arrived at 300 wins and now my goal is to achieve 400. I believe that if I remain healthy, it is an objective that I can achieve.”

In May, in Turkey, the Italian became the third player in the history of the ATP Challenger Tour to arrive at the figure of 300 triumphs, something that only had been achieved by Spain’s Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo before this season. It was an accomplishment that had really motivated Lorenzi for the future, as retirement is not an option.

“That moment was very special. It’s not easy to arrive at 300 victories. The Challenger Tour is always very strong and competitive. The stars of tomorrow play there and so do many players that have been very high (in the Emirates ATP Rankings) and motivated to return from injury.

“At the moment, retirement is not something that I have in my head. I feel that I am playing well and I will continue competing as long as I feel that I am competitive and can win. At the least, three years. For that, I remain motivated and I am very happy of what I have achieved in my career. Why can’t I think about achieving 400 or 500 wins? That is the goal that I hope to achieve.”

Lorenzi, who reached a career-high World No. 49 in April 2013, has claimed 16 titles in Challenger tournaments in his successful career. He arrives in Sao Paulo having enjoyed great success there on the ATP World Tour, with a run to the final of the Brasil Open in 2014 (l. to Delbonis) and the doubles title match this year alongside Diego Schwartzman (l. to Cabal/Farah). All of these achievements, in addition to witnessing the success of his fellow Italians, has Lorenzi looking forward to the ATP Challenger Tour Finals and the 2016 season.

“This years has been very good for our generation of tennis players from Italy. Fognini and Bolelli won the Australian Open in doubles, Flavia (Pennetta) won the women’s singles title at the US Open against Roberta (Vinci) and the Davis Cup team reached the semi-finals. Also, Seppi beat Federer in Australia and Fognini beat Nadal three times. All this is very positive and beautiful to see that the players I have grown up with are playing this well.”

These achievements have motivated Lorenzi more than anything. For the second time (2011), he qualified as one of the eight players who will play in the ATP Challenger Tour Finals at the Pinheiros Sports Club from 25-29 November. “I have great memories of Sao Paulo. I like the city. The last time it was on hard courts and this time it’s on indoor clay, which I prefer.”

Argentina’s Guido Pella, Brazil’s Guilherme Clezar, Spain’s Daniel Munoz-de la Nava and Inigo Cervantes, Moldova’s Radu Albot and Uzbekistan’s Farrukh Dustov also qualified for the final tournament of the season.