For the final of the Challenger 125 in Sassuolo (clay) there were many spectators who, taking advantage of the not particularly hot day, packed the stands of the Sporting Club. The German was competing for the title Daniel Altmaier (n.82 ATP), who played as the favorite, and the Dutchman Jesper De Jong (n.146), author of the surprising elimination of the Slovakian Martin Klizan in the semi-final who had started off great, only to then go out in the distance like a candle. Altmaier immediately takes a break lead and seems destined to lead the race. If only the pleasant breeze that had been welcomed by the public began to strengthen, causing sudden eddies of red clay on the central. This throws off all the mechanisms a bit, transforming the short ball into a deadly weapon and the serve into a lottery. Thus it becomes difficult to take into account the breaks that follow one another in a confusing manner (there will be four at the end of the set), making it almost inevitable that everything will be decided in the tie-break roulette where De Jong prevails and closes the set on the first ball. At this point he is the favorite from the day before and is forced to chase, but his energy is low, and perhaps the desire is also lacking, so the surrender is rapid and almost painless. The final result 7-6(5) 6-1 is flawless and the 24-year-old native of Haarlem brings home his third success at Challenger level (Almaty 2021 and Kozerki 2023 the previous ones) which earns him the new best ranking in the position n.119, second best Dutchman in the ranking after Botic van de Zandschulp.
But on the final day here in Sassuolo the tricolor also waved, thanks to Marco Bortolotti who, stealthily, continues on his path under the radar and makes another Challenger his own, beating, paired with the Australian Matthew Romios, the Americans Ryan Seggerman/Patrik Trhac with a score of 7-6 (7) 2-6 11/9 . The match was exciting, as only certain doubles matches can be, and it ended in a sprint. The tennis player from Guastalla, having turned 33, continues to be one of our best specialists and has won his eighth trophy. Not bad if we consider that he only managed to rise to Challenger level in 2021 because before that he was too busy making a splash in the ITF: 12 wins in singles and 41 in doubles. Yes, you read it right, his victories in what until recently were called Futures amount in total to the monstrous figure of 53. With this result Marco rises to position n.103 (but he has already visited the top 100 only a couple months ago), third best Italian after the unreachable Vavassori and Bolelli.
On the English grass of Ilkley (Challenger 125) the Belgian wins David Goffin beating the Frenchman Harold Mayot (n.125 ATP) 6-4 6-2 in the final without too many problems. The 33-year-old native of Rocourt (practically a hamlet of the city of Liège) is certainly not a lawn specialist (in 2019 alone he played more than ten matches there) but his opponent was even less of a specialist, having played 19 matches there in the whole season. career. With this success David returns to the top 100, climbing back to position no. 82 ATP (after being no. 7 in 2017), and wins his Challenger title number nine, even if the feeling remains that he is finding it increasingly difficult to maintain his level. and that the terminus is not far away.
The one who has just started his race is the 20-year-old Pole Max Kasnikowski who on his home courts in Poznan (Challenger 75, clay) came from behind to beat the Argentine Camilo Ugo Carabelli (n.114) (3-6 6-4 6-3), winning his second title after that of Oeiras in January. Follow this boy who, perhaps precisely because of his small physique of only 178 cm, tends to break away from the usual patterns, aided in this by excellent manual skills. Having said this, it must also be added that Carabelli generously contributed to the success of his opponent on the day. With this result the young native of Warsaw enters the top 200, to be precise at n.184, second player from his country after Hubert Hurkacz.
