The Cagliari Tennis Club is preparing for a week of tennis. From 29 April to 5 May, it will host the first of the two Super Challengers to be played in Italy (the other will be in Turin). There is great anticipation for an Italian exploit. Waiting for the little fans who will crowd the stands of the Monte Urpinu club are many events organized by the Italian Tennis and Padel Federation for an unforgettable experience
It is no mystery that part of the credit for the great abundance of champions that we are enjoying in this magical spring of Italian tennis also lies with the so-called minor tournaments. Which aren't so minor after all, given that every season they act as a springboard for the big names of tomorrow.
And the "Sardinia Open", with its 205,000 euros in prize money and the prestigious qualification of "Super Challenger", is proof of this. After all, FITP President Angelo Binaghi said it clearly: "This year the tournament must be the launching pad for our players". And the fact that the tournament which will be staged at the Monte Urpinu club from 29 April to 5 May in the past has been particularly fortunate for the tennis players who attended it is revealed by the names of the many players who, from the red clay of Cagliari, have took off to conquer the ATP circuit.
The hope therefore is that good fortune will smile again at the second Challenger 175 of the season (after the debut in Phoenix, Arizona), the first scheduled in Europe, which will almost certainly have among its protagonists important names and bright stars like 'blue, former number six in the world ranking, Matteo Berrettini.
In over half a century of activity, the club founded in 1964 has hosted six matches for Italy in the Davis Cup and the 2013 Fed Cup final won against Russia. Italy celebrated its fourth triumph here in the most important competition for women's national teams. But, if that Fed Cup success was without a doubt the most prestigious challenge hosted by the club of the Sardinian capital, we cannot forget the five matches that the Italian Davis Cup national team chose to play at the Cagliari Tennis Club.
The "first" of this unforgettable five took place in May 1968 with a peremptory 5-0 defeat against Hungary, a match that is remembered above all for a great performance by the event's record holder Nicola Pietrangeli. The list of matches continues with the 3-1 against Chile in October 1985. But the most famous chapter was written in February 1990 with a memorable 3-2 against the champions Sweden. Match gone down in history for Paolo Canè's success over the then world number one Mats Wilander, achieved in the fifth set after a battle that began on Sunday and ended on Monday. In April 2004 the Azzurri returned to Tc Cagliari to beat Georgia 3-2. In March 2009 another success, the fourth, against Slovakia, beaten 4-1 with Fabio Fognini as the great protagonist. The magical Davis five is completed with the success in March 2020 against South Korea in the preliminaries that qualify for the final group stage in the new Davis format.
Davis aside, in 2021, in the midst of the post-covid period, confirmation of the lucky star of the Cagliari sky also arrived after the all-blue triumph in the ATP 250 tournament of Lorenzo Sonego in singles and the Sonego/Vavassori pair in doubles.
But the wonders of the Sardinian tournament will not only be those that can be seen from the stands. In fact, there are many activities that will be proposed during the tournament week, especially for young people: from the invitation to participate (free of charge) for all schools in the area, to the Young Villages with the teachers of the Federation, in the name of multidisciplinarity . “In these events – explained Michelangelo Dell'Edera, director of the “Roberto Lombardi” Higher Training Institute – we aim to increasingly excite the young people of the area, with a dual objective. The first is to build the loyalty of children and young people in schools, so that our wonderful racket sports become increasingly popular. The second objective is to actively involve the children of the local tennis schools, in order to stimulate in young people the dream of one day becoming tennis players".
The intent is therefore clear: to entertain the kids and make them fall in love with racket sports, combining direct experiences with the possibility of attending champions' training sessions and matches. It will be a week of sport, fun and emotions for everyone.