SALZBURG/STARNBERG, July 15, 2023
The ATP Challenger Tour is back in Austria and two home favourites will compete for the singles title at the 2023 Salzburg Open when Sebastian Ofner will take on Lukas Neumayer on Sunday. The third edition of the €145,000 clay-court tournament is being held at the 1. Salzburger Tennis Club in the picturesque city of Salzburg. Known for its rich history, cultural heritage, and stunning landscapes, Austria’s fourth-largest city provides the perfect backdrop for this prestigious sporting event.
Ofner booked his spot in the championship match with wins in the bottom half of the draw over Argentine Andrea Collarini, Lukas Klein from Slovakia and Nerman Fatic of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In Saturday’s semi-finals, Ofner cruised past Juan Manuel Cerundolo of Argentina 6-0, 6-2. The No. 3 seed struck five aces and won 90 per cent of his first-service points to advance in 51 minutes.
Sieh dir diesen Beitrag auf Instagram an
Neumayer reaches first Challenger final
Neumayer beat Sumit Nagal of India in the first round followed by wins over seventh-seeded Argentine Facundo Bagnis and fourth-seeded Brazilian Thiago Monteiro.
On a sunny and hot Saturday with temperatures above 30 degrees Celsius in Salzburg, the 20-year-old wild card entry ended the run of Slovenian qualifier Blaz Rola, who appeared in the stage of the final four at an ATP Challenger Tour event for the first time since lifting the trophy in Split, Croatia in April 2021. Neumayer absolutely delighted his home crowd, capitalized on two of his nine break-point chances to seal a 6-4, 3-6, 7-5 victory in two hours and 28 minutes.
Sieh dir diesen Beitrag auf Instagram an
World No. 72 Ofner will appear in his sixth Challenger final of the season, seeking his fourth career title, his first since Prague in April last year. World No. 269 Neumayer will play his first final at Challenger level. The pair will meet for the first time.
