Ironman Cerretani Wins Again In Braunschweig

If there’s a week with an ATP Challenger Tour event, James Cerretani is probably playing in it.

The 34-year-old American doubles specialist has played in 40 tournaments over the past year. In 2015, he competed for an astounding 28 consecutive weeks in tournaments throughout the U.S., Asia and Europe. Cerretani has already played 23 tournaments so far this year, opening the 2016 season by playing in 10 of the first 11 weeks.

The miles he’s logged have been paying off, though. Cerretani has already won four ATP Challenger Tour doubles title this year and is now on an eight-match win streak with Philipp Oswald of Austria. The pair won this week’s $125,000 event in Braunschweig, Germany, giving Cerretani his biggest title in more than five years.

“I just have a burning passion for the game,” said Cerretani. “I’ve achieved a lot, but there are still a lot of things I haven’t achieved. I feel like I’ve even underachieved in some ways. I still want to fulfill my potential and achieve the goals I have before moving on to the next phase of my life. “

Having started the year at No. 135 in the Emirates ATP Doubles Rankings, Cerretani will now be firmly entrenched inside the Top 100 after his win in Braunschweig. After spending several years competing primarily on the ATP World Tour, the American said the time he’s spent in Challengers has given him the experience needed to start competing in the world’s biggest events again.

“Challenger tournaments are a great opportunity to build your ranking and get matches to improve your game,” he said. “It doesn’t matter if it’s a Challenger or a Grand Slam because everyone is working hard and the level is still high.”

Having competed in more than 35 tournaments annually for most of his time on tour, Cerretani has inevitably picked up a few good stories during his time on tour. But during this year’s ATP Challenger Tour event in Jonkoping, he endured an especially painful experience.

“I told my partner he needed to hit his serve harder. The very next point, I get down at the net and he hit me in the back of my head with his serve,” laughed Cerretani. “I have to lay down on the ground when he serves now!”

Cerretani is back at it again this week, teaming up with fellow American Max Schnur as the top seeds at the $50,000 ATP Challenger Tour event in Poznan, Poland. Although his aim is to make it back into the Top 50 of the Emirates ATP Rankings, his main focus is on the journey to get there.

“There are small goals I want to achieve every day – like having a positive mindset and high morale. You want to feel like you’re moving forward with a purpose,” said Cerretani. “I think I’m playing at a very high level and happy with the commitment to the process each day, so I’m confident about the rest of the year.”