MONZA, April 7, 2026
Defending champion Raphael Collignon is back at the Villa Reale Tennis Monza and delivered a commanding performance in his opening match at the Atkinsons Monza Open on Tuesday, defeating Australia’s Christopher O’Connell 6-2, 6-2 in just 69 minutes. O’Connell appeared hampered by a slight illness, but Collignon’s relentless pressure and high-tempo tennis gave the Australian little chance to settle.
The 24-year-old Belgian, now ranked world No. 68 and top seed at the ATP Challenger 125 event, looked even stronger than he did during his title-winning run in 2025. Returning to clay for the first time this season, Collignon immediately found his rhythm. In front of packed stands on Center Court, he sent down seven aces, saved both break points he faced and capitalized on four of his own seven break-point chances.
Kicking off clay SZN in style 🧱🕺
🇧🇪 Raphael Collignon’s title defence is off to the perfect start 6-2, 6-2 over O’Connell#ATPChallenger | 🇮🇹 Monza pic.twitter.com/cofdZZuEB9
— ATP Challenger (@ATPChallenger) April 7, 2026
“It’s my first clay-court tournament of the year and I had a tough opponent right away, but I was ready,” Collignon said. “I arrived here on Friday and immediately felt comfortable again on these courts. I’m very happy to be back.”
His affection for the tournament was clear, especially considering he chose Monza over the Masters 1000 event in Monte Carlo.
“I always like coming back to places where I’ve been successful and where I feel comfortable,” he explained. “I like the people and the atmosphere here in Italy. The food is also very good, which is important. The weather is nice and the courts are very good. The hotel is a little outside the city, so you can focus well on the tennis. On the other hand, Monza is not far from Milan, so you can also visit the city quite quickly. Overall, it is a great combination here.”
Collignon will next face Swiss Remy Bertola in the second round on Wednesday.
Later on Centre Court, another highly anticipated player also progressed. Twenty-year-old Spaniard Martin Landaluce, fresh from reaching the quarterfinals at the Miami Open, battled past Italian qualifier Federico Arnaboldi 6-4, 2-6, 6-2. Although still inconsistent at times, the fourth seed from Madrid showed flashes of outstanding tennis and pulled away in the deciding set.
“It was very tough today, as it was my first match on clay,” Landaluce told Tennis TourTalk. “I only had five days of practice and I knew it was going to be tough. I tried to fight the whole match, which was very physical. I tried to play my best game, hitting a couple of winners.
“It was a great atmosphere on court, even when I sometimes was playing against the crowd today. That’s normal, as my opponent also played very well. I hope that I will continue like this tomorrow.”
Second seed Valentin Royer also made a winning start, edging Italian wild card entry Luca Nardi 7-6, 7-5. The Frenchman prevailed after more than two hours of high-quality tennis, although Nardi impressed in his first match under new coach Renzo Furlan.
Three Italians advanced to the next round. Marco Cecchinato came from a set down to defeat Austrian qualifier Sandro Kopp in a third-set tie-break and will now meet Landaluce in the second round. Qualifier Andrea Guerrieri dominated Guy Den Ouden from the Netherlands 6-4, 6-2, while Raul Brancaccio, fresh from his title win at the Open Menorca on Sunday, defeated fellow Italian Jacopo Vasami 7-5, 7-5.
Brancaccio will face Stefano Travaglia on Wednesday, while Guerrieri takes on Mattia Bellucci. The winners of those two all-Italian clashes are set to meet in the quarterfinals, guaranteeing at least one Italian player a place in the semi-finals.
Among the other seeded players, Frenchmen Luca Van Assche and Hugo Gaston moved through, as did Croatian Dino Prizmic, who defeated local wild card Pietro Fellin 6-4, 6-1.
Singles – First Round Results
Marco Cecchinato (ITA) bt Sandro Kopp (AUT) 4-6, 6-1, 7-6
Luca Van Assche (FRA) bt Maks Kasnikowski (POL) 6-2, 6-4
Andrea Guerrieri (ITA) bt Guy Den Ouden (NED) 6-4, 6-2
Timofey Skatov (KAZ) bt Norbert Gombos (SVK) 6-3, 6-1
Raphael Collignon (BEL) bt Christopher O’Connell (AUS) 6-2, 6-2
Raul Brancaccio (ITA) bt Jacopo Vasami (ITA) 7-5, 7-5
Arthur Fery (GBR) bt Vitaliy Sachko (UKR) 4-6, 6-3, 6-3
Hugo Gaston (FRA) bt Gianluca Cadenasso (ITA) 6-4, 6-4
Martin Landaluce (ESP) bt Federico Arnaboldi (ITA) 6-4, 2-6, 6-2
Billy Harris (GBR) bt Michele Ribecai (ITA) 6-4, 6-2
Dino Prizmic (CRO) bt Pietro Fellin (ITA) 6-4, 6-1
Valentin Royer (FRA) bt Luca Nardi (ITA) 7-6, 7-5
Doubles – First Round
Reynolds/Watt (NZL) bt Schnaitter/Wallner (GER) 6-3, 7-6
