MUNGIA/BAKIO, June 28, 2023

Fantastic beaches, fascinating landscapes and cultural highlights. This is what the Spanish province of Bizkaia is known for among holidaymakers. In particular, the capital Bilbao, with almost 350,000 inhabitants, attracts millions of tourists every year. Even though the largest city of the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country – the starting point of this year’s Tour de France – does not host an international tennis tournament itself, there are some interesting events on the ITF World Tennis Tour taking place around Bilbao these weeks.

Rumbo a Gaztelugatxe! 👍 pic.twitter.com/mKcr7pyv8n

— Florian Heer (@Florian_Heer) June 25, 2023

The three-week Basque swing began in mid-June with the second edition of the Laukariz Open, held at the sprawling Club de Campo in Mungia. Although the town is mainly characterised by industry, the tennis club, which is located on the outskirts and in the countryside, has a special feature: it is played on indoor clay. Even though the courts are open on three sides, they fulfil their purpose, prevent any interruption of rain and create a special atmosphere and a unique sound experience when the rackets of the tennis cracks hit the balls.

USP on the Spanish Pro Circuit

Of some 40 men’s tournaments to be staged in Spain on the ITF World Tennis Tour this year, this is the only one to be played on indoor clay. While the weather in the north of Spain is traditionally less sunny than in the south, a roof was not necessary last week – at least as protection from rainfall.

The final between 19-year-old Portuguese talent Henrique Rocha and Spaniard Pedro Vives Marcos took place on Saturday evening at around 30 degrees and in front of a packed crowd of around 300 spectators on the now shaded centre court.

Henrique Rocha 🇵🇹 earns his second career title on the ITF World Tennis Tour by winning the 2nd Open Laukariz in Mungia.#ITFWorldTennisTour #Mungia pic.twitter.com/PBZBEqJo2X

— Florian Heer (@Florian_Heer) June 24, 2023

“We tennis players always have to adapt to new conditions,” said Rocha, who won his second title on the Pro Circuit in Mungia. “Last week we played in Martos in almost 40 degrees on hard courts. I came here, practiced for about an hour and we were on our way. Of course, there are one or two bad bounces. But that is normal on clay, maybe with the exception of Roland Garros. But I was able to adjust better from match to match and of course I’m very happy to have won the title here.”

Pure tradition in Bakio

It’s back to the hard courts for the second week at the Open Kiroleta in Bakio, situated about 12 kilometres north of Mungia, directly on the coast of Bizkaia.

For the 38th time, the organisers of the Kiroleta Tennis Club welcome professionals from all over the world. Thus, some well-known names can be read on the specially displayed “Hall-Of-Fame” board on the club’s winding grounds. Among others, Roberto Bautista Agut, Alejandro Davidovich-Fokina, Jaume Munar, Fernando Verdasco and Arthur Rinderknech have already served up in Bakio. However, everything is outshone by the former World No. 7 and finalist of the French Open 1994 Alberto Berasategui. Consequently, the Centre Court also bears the name of the most successful Basque tennis player in history, who spent parts of his youth on the courts of the Kiroleta Tennis Club.

Kaixo! 👋

Main draw of the 38th @openkiroleta is kicking off today. #TravelTheTour #ITFWorldTennisTour pic.twitter.com/IuOywqGgkN

— Florian Heer (@Florian_Heer) June 26, 2023

Txapela as a special present

The only German on the list of winners is Toni Holzinger. The current two-time ITF Senior World Champion was successful in Bakio in 2007. This will remain the case for the time being, as the tournament will be held without German participation this year, when 32 players are competing in the singles competition for a total prize money of US-$25,000, 25 ATP Ranking points and, of course, the famous “Txapela”.

The traditional beret is given to each champion of the tournament series as a special souvenir to take with them on their onward journey. This will also be the case next week in Getxo, where the Basque Swing will come to its conclusion this year in the historic territory of Bizkaia.

This Basque feeling … 😀#Txapela 🧢 #Mungia #Laukariz pic.twitter.com/ytVdU1XpYM

— Florian Heer (@Florian_Heer) June 24, 2023