2012 atp challenger tour

About: 2012 ATP Challenger Tour

The ATP Challenger Tour was the secondary professional tennis circuit organized by the ATP. The 2012 ATP Challenger Tour calendar comprised 15 top tier Tretorn SERIE+ tournaments, and a total of 148 tournaments, with prize money ranging from $35,000 up to $150,000.

The ATP Challenger Tour: Path to the Big Time

• Last updated on May 2, 2023

Established in 1978, the Challenger circuit has grown into an important stepping stone for young tennis players looking to make it to the highest levels of the sport. 

History of the Challenger Tour

The Challenger circuit was established as a way to provide a professional level of competition for tennis players who weren’t yet ready to compete on the main tour. The circuit initially consisted of just five tournaments in the United States, but quickly grew in popularity and spread around the world.

By the mid-1980s, the Challengers had become an important part of the tennis landscape, with dozens of tournaments held each year. In 1986, the ATP officially recognized the circuit and began awarding ranking points to players based on their performances.

Since then, the circuit has continued to grow in popularity and importance, with the number of tournaments held annually growing steadily year by year. In 2008 there were 178 events played across 40 different countries. 

And although numbers have occasionally diminished, for example in the first quarter of 2013 and an inevitable dip due to Covid-19, they’ve since bounced back with 184 events taking place in 2022 and a record 190 plus planned for 2023.

Format of the Challenger Circuit

Challenger tournaments are generally smaller than those on the ATP World Tour, with most events featuring a draw of 32 or 64 players.

The format of the tournaments is similar to that of other professional tennis events, with players competing in singles and doubles matches. The matches are generally played over three sets, although some tournaments may have different rules depending on the surface and location of the event.

The winner of a Challenger event typically earns around 80 ranking points and a prize purse of between $50,000 and $125,000. By contrast, the winner of an ATP Tour event can earn upwards of 1,000 ranking points and a prize purse of more than $1 million.

However in 2023 the ATP launched a new tier of Challengers known as Challenger 175s in which, as the name suggests, the winner can earn 175 points along with prize money of $220,000. 

Importance of the ATP Challenger Circuit

For young, ambitious players, the Challenger circuit is vital. It provides an opportunity to gain valuable experience playing against other pros, while also earning vital ranking points and prize money.

Many of the world’s top players have competed in Challenger events at some point in their careers. Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, and Andy Murray all spent time on the Challenger circuit before making it to the main tour. In fact, Nadal won his first professional title at a Challenger event in 2002, Djokovic in 2004.

The circuit is also an important way for players to gain exposure and build their profiles in the tennis world. While it may not have the same level of media coverage as the ATP Tour, it provides a platform for players to showcase their talents and gain recognition from fans and sponsors.

In addition to helping young players make their way up the rankings, the Challenger circuit also plays an important role in the overall development of the sport. By providing a professional level of competition for players who are not yet ready for the ATP Tour, the circuit helps to ensure a strong pipeline of talent coming up through the ranks.

Challenger Challenges

Despite its importance, the circuit faces numerous challenges in the modern era. One of the biggest is the high cost of hosting events, which can run up to $200,000 when accounting for prize money, player accommodations, and other expenses. With smaller prize pools and less visibility than ATP Tour events, hosting organizations may struggle to justify the expense of hosting a Challenger tournament.

Another issue is the emergence of alternative tours and circuits, such as the ITF World Tennis Tour and the PTPA Challenger-style circuit. These tours provide players with additional options for competing at the professional level, which may lead some players to prioritize these events over Challenger tournaments.

The Challenger Circuit has been criticized for being financially unsustainable for players who are not in the top 100. The prize money on offer at Challenger tournaments is significantly less than that on the ATP Tour, and the costs associated with travelling to tournaments and paying for accommodation can make it difficult for players to make a living on the Challenger Circuit.

Rising to the Challenge

If you get the opportunity, the Challenger circuit is a great way to get to see up and coming stars before they hit the big time – and the occasional wizened pro. Keep an eye out right here for info on individual tournaments and if you’re looking to start your own path to the Challengers check out our round up of the best tennis rackets for beginners .

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2012 ATP Challenger Tour

The ATP Challenger Tour was the secondary professional tennis circuit organized by the ATP. The 2012 ATP Challenger Tour calendar comprised 15 top tier Tretorn SERIE+ tournaments, and a total of 148 tournaments, with prize money ranging from $35,000 up to $150,000. [1] [2]

Statistical Information

These tables present the number of singles (S) and doubles (D) titles won by each player and each nation during the season, within all the tournament categories of the 2012 ATP Challenger Tour: the Tretorn SERIE+ tournaments, and the regular series tournaments. [1] [2] The players/nations are sorted by: 1) total number of titles (a doubles title won by two players representing the same nation counts as only one win for the nation); 2) cumulated importance of those titles (one Tretorn SERIE+ win > one regular tournament win); 3) a singles > doubles hierarchy; 4) alphabetical order (by family names for players).

To avoid confusion and double counting, these tables should be updated only after an event is completed.

Titles won by player

Titles won by nation, atp year-to-date challenger rankings, point distribution.

Points are awarded as follows:

• Association of Tennis Professionals
• International Tennis Federation
• ^ a b c "Tretorn SERIE+ – The Premier Events of the ATP Challenger Tour" . atpworldtour.com . ATP Tour, Inc. Archived from the original on 9 February 2010 . Retrieved 2010-02-12 .
• ^ "2012 ATP Year-To-Date Challenger Rankings" . atpworldtour.com . Association of Tennis Professionals . 5 November 2012 . Retrieved 21 November 2012 .

External links

• Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) World Tour official website
• International Tennis Federation (ITF) official website

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• 2012 ATP Challenger Tour Finals

2012 ATP Challenger Tour Finals explained

The 2012 ATP Challenger Tour Finals was a tennis tournament played at the Ginásio do Ibirapuera in São Paulo , Brazil, between November 27 and December 1, 2012. [1] It was the second edition of the event. It was run by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) and was part of the 2012 ATP Challenger Tour . The event took place on indoor hard courts. It served as the season ending championships for players on the ATP Challenger Tour. The seven best players of the season and a wild card awardee qualified for the event and were split into two groups of four. During this stage, players competed in a round robin format (meaning players played against all the other players in their group). The two players with the best results in each group progressed to the semifinals where the winners of a group faced the runners-up of the other group. This stage, however, was a knock out stage.

Qualification

The top seven players with the most points accumulated in ATP Challenger tournaments during the year plus one wild card entrant from the host country qualified for the 2012 ATP Challenger Tour Finals. Countable points include points earned in 2012 until November 5, plus points earned at late-season 2011 Challenger tournaments played after November 14. However, players were only eligible to qualify for the tournament if they played a minimum of eight ATP Challenger Tour tournaments during the season. Moreover, the accumulated year-to-date points were only countable to a maximum of ten best results.

The tournament line-up was initially announced on 7 November 2012 at the tournament's website, [3] based on the 2012 ATP Year-To-Date Challenger Rankings up to that date.

Victor Hănescu , Paolo Lorenzi , Aljaž Bedene and Evgeny Donskoy qualified directly to the tournament, whereas Guido Pella , Andreas Haider-Maurer and Rubén Ramírez Hidalgo were given their berths after Martin Kližan , Andrey Kuznetzov , Jerzy Janowicz , Tatsuma Ito , Daniel Gimeno Traver , Roberto Bautista Agut and Grega Žemlja chose not to participate. Thomaz Bellucci , the Brazilian No. 1, was given the wildcard entry to the tournament for the second consecutive year.

In the week before the tournament and after the line-up was closed, Andreas Haider-Maurer and Evgeny Donskoy withdrew from the tournament due to injury and personal reasons, respectively. [4] [5] They were replaced by the designated alternates Gastão Elias and Adrian Ungur .

Victor Hănescu , Romanian No. 1 and former World No. 26, qualified as the leader of the ATP Challenger Tour ranking. He won 3 Challenger Tour titles in Szczecin, Banja Luka and Timișoara, finished runner-up on another 3 occasions in Sibiu, Bercuit and Arad and was semifinalist on yet another 3 tournaments in Cordenons, Milan and Marrakech.

Paolo Lorenzi entered the tournament just after achieving a career-high World No. 63 ranking. He won 2 Challenger Tour titles in Cordenons and Medellín, and had 5 runner-up showings in Sarasota, Guadalajara, Todi, San Luis Potosí and Salinas. He entered the tournament as the Italian No. 3 in the singles rankings.

Aljaž Bedene , Slovenian No. 3, achieved a career-high ranking of World No. 79 during the 2012 season, boosted by 4 Challenger Tour titles at Wuhan, Košice, Barletta and Casablanca, a runner-up finish in An-Ning and a semifinal appearance in Prague. He won the most ATP Challenger Tour singles titles between the qualified players.

Guido Pella is another of the players who achieved career-high rankings shortly before the tournament. The Argentinian No. 7 earned a career-high ranking of World No. 108 following 3 Challenger Tour titles at Campinas, Manta and Salinas. He also reached the final in Guayaquil and the semifinals in Rio de Janeiro and Lima.

Rubén Ramírez Hidalgo , Spanish No. 12 and former World No. 50, won 2 Challenger Tour titles in Tunis and San Luis Potosí, finished runner-up in Pereira, and reached the semifinals in Guayaquil twice (both in the 2011 and 2012 editions).

Gastão Elias achieved career-high rankings of World No. 133 and Portuguese No. 2 during the 2012 season. He won his maiden ATP Challenger Tour title in Rio de Janeiro, and had 3 runner-up finishes at Caltanissetta, Porto Alegre and São Paulo, as well as a semifinalist showing in Tampere.

Adrian Ungur , Romanian No. 2, was also the second Romanian player to qualify for the ATP Challenger Tour Finals, together with Victor Hănescu . In the 2012 season, he achieved a career-high ranking of World No. 79 and reached 6 tournament finals on the ATP Challenger Tour, winning one title in Sibiu, and finishing as runner-up in Trnava, Brașov, Marrakech, Meknes and Bucaramanga. He also reached the semifinals in Montevideo.

Thomaz Bellucci , Brazilian No. 1 and former World No. 21, received a wildcard entry to the ATP Challenger Tour Finals for a second consecutive year and he is the only player to repeat a presence in the tournament. During the 2012 season, he mostly played tournaments from the ATP World Tour. Still, he achieved success in both the ATP World Tour and ATP Challenger Tour. In the latter, he won the title in Braunschweig and reached the semifinals at the 2011 ATP Challenger Tour Finals in São Paulo. In the ATP World Tour, he won his third career tile in Gstaad, defeating Janko Tipsarević (No. 8 at the time) in the final, lost the final in Moscow to Andreas Seppi , and reached the semifinals in both Stuttgart and São Paulo. Bellucci has also contributed to the promotion of the Brazilian team to the 2013 Davis Cup World Group with 3 singles rubbers wins.

Thiago Alves became the first designated alternate for the tournament, after the preceding alternate players, Gastão Elias and Adrian Ungur , were moved to the main draw before the tournament began. Alves was given the chance to play two round robin matches, due to Thomaz Bellucci 's withdrawal with a left shoulder injury after being defeated in his first round robin match. [6] Thiago Alves won 2 titles in the 2012 ATP Challenger Tour, in São Paulo and Guadalajara. His 2012 results also included a runner-up finish in Cali and 3 semifinal finishes in Florianópolis, Campinas and Rio Quente.

The draw took place on November 25, 2012. The top seed was placed in the Green Group and the second seed placed in the Yellow Group. Players seeded three and four, five and six, seven and eight, were then drawn in pairs and divided into the two groups.

Green Group: Thomaz Bellucci [1], Rubén Ramírez Hidalgo [4], Adrian Ungur [6], Guido Pella [7].

Yellow Group: Paolo Lorenzi [2], Victor Hănescu [3], Aljaž Bedene [5], Gastão Elias [8].

Player head-to-heads

These were the head-to-head records between the qualified players, immediately before the tournament.

Day-by-day summary

Day 1: november 27, 2012, day 2: november 28, 2012, day 3: november 29, 2012, day 4: november 30, 2012, day 5: december 1, 2012, points and prize money.

The total prize money for the 2012 ATP Challenger Tour Finals was US$220,000. [1]

See main article: 2012 ATP Challenger Tour Finals – Singles .

• 2012 ATP Challenger Tour
• 2012 ATP World Tour Finals
• 2012 WTA Tour Championships

External links

• Official Website

Notes and References

• Web site: ATP Challenger Tour Finals To Return In São Paulo . October 24, 2012. atpworldtour.com. Association of Tennis Professionals . November 21, 2012.
• Web site: ATP Year-To-Date Challenger Rankings (singles) . November 5, 2012. atpworldtour.com. Association of Tennis Professionals . November 21, 2012.
• Web site: The seven qualifiers for the tournament are defined. . Portuguese. challengerfinals.com.br. ATP Challenger Tour Finals Official Website. 7 November 2012. 21 November 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20121128014630/http://www.challengerfinals.com.br/noticia/2012/11/definidos-os-sete-classificados-para-o-atp-challenger-tour-finals. 28 November 2012. dead.
• Web site: Gastão Elias replaces Haider-Maurer . challengerfinals.com.br. ATP Challenger Tour Finals Official Website. 21 November 2012. 21 November 2012. Portuguese.
• Web site: Bedene wants to represent Eastern European tennis in the Finals . challengerfinals.com.br. ATP Challenger Tour Finals Official Website. 22 November 2012. 23 November 2012. Portuguese.
• Web site: Hanescu Clinches SF Spot At ATP Challenger Tour Finals. . atpworldtour.com. Association of Tennis Professionals . 28 November 2012. 2 December 2012.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License . It uses material from the Wikipedia article " 2012 ATP Challenger Tour Finals ".

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