ATP 250 tournament returns to first week of calendar and kicks off at Balewadi Stadium in Pune on December 31 . World number 17 Marin Cilic will headline a strong singles field along with 16 other top-100 players .
Pune (Maharashtra), December 7 : When South Asias only ATP 250 tournament returns to the first week of the calendar and kicks off at the Balewadi Stadium in Pune on December 31, world number 17 Marin Cilic will headline a strong singles field along with 16 other top-100 players.Nevertheless, the players can now gear up for the season's first Grand Slam Australian Open in Pune by playing in the tournament.The tournament, which is sponsored by Tata Group, is being hosted by MSLTA in association with the Government of Maharashtra.It is a great honour, not only for Maharashtra but also for the entire region.
We as tournament organisers are gratified by the tournament's return to January first week because it will feature more exciting competition in the presence of bigger names, and this singles acceptance list reflects the same.We are looking forward to welcoming all the players, administrators, and supporters to make this fifth edition even more special, said Prashant Sutar, Tournament Director of Tata Open Maharashtra.Cilic was the 2014 US Open champion twice, in 2009 and 2010, and reached the semi-finals in 2018.Apart from Croatian Cilic, the singles main draw will feature five other top-50 players: Botic van de Zandschulp (ranked 35), Emil Ruusuvuori of Finland (ranked 40), Sebastian Baez of Argentina (ranked 43), Jenson Brooksby of the United States (48), and Alex Molcan of Slovakia (50), according to a Tata Open release. In the 2022 season, Zandschulp played in all four Majors, losing the Wimbledon pre-quarterfinals and the Roland Garros Round of 32 to Rafael Nadal.He came in second at the Munich ATP 250, his season-best result.We're proud to say that we've left no stone unturned in making this tournament a success for all concerned.Pune is going to be a competitive sport this year, with a lot of international talent coming in.I am sure the players, their coaches, and the officials will have a good time in Pune, said Organising Secretary Pravin Darade, who is also an IAS officer and Principal Secretary Environment, Government of Maharashtra. Brooksby also had some good results in two finals (Dallas and Atlanta) and would aim to go the full distance in Pune.Molcan, a southpaw, advanced to finals in Lyon and Marrakech, where he beat top-10 Felix Auger-Aliassime.