Let’s focus on ITF Tournaments 2024 just a couple weeks left to the final matches

The emotion of great international tennis continues on the red clay courts the Tennis Forte Village ASD Sports Academy in Santa Margherita di Pula, Sardinia, with a double super final match scheduled for Sunday, October 27, 2024.

After a great start on Monday, September 16, 2024, the Sardinia ITF Tournaments are now moving towards their final stages, with two tournaments scheduled for October 14 and 21, and two breathtaking final matches that will thrill the wide crowd at Forte Village ASD Sports Academy in Santa Margherita di Pula, a temple of great tennis located right close to Cagliari, scheduled for the afternoon of Sunday, October 27.

Six weeks during which the courts of Forte Village, a five-star resort surrounded by over 50 hectares of beautiful nature located a few steps from some of the most beautiful beaches in Sardinia, acknowledged for the high quality of its facilities and sports academies, have hosted athletes from thirty-two nations. More specifically, twenty-three from Europe (Italy, of course, then Austria, Belgium, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Lithuania, Moldova, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and Ukraine), five from America (Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Haiti and USA), two from Asia (India and Iran), one from Africa (Morocco) and, last but not least, even one from Oceania (Australia), thus representing all five continents.

A wide range of athletes who have raised the competing level, confirming the importance of Sardinian tournaments within the ITF circuit (so competitions organized under the approval of the International Tennis Federation), but who have also contributed keeping focused with a look on the ancient Island of Ichnusa, the incredible beauty of its natural landscape and its cutting-edge sports facilities, elevating it to an excellent destination for what concerns the international competitive sport events.

ITF Tournaments in Sardinia: a springboard for the future stars of international tennis

The ITF Tournaments organized on the tennis courts of Forte Village are part of the “Forte Village Tennis Project”, an ambitious initiative launched in 2013 thanks to the patronage of the Italian Federation and the support of the Department of Tourism, Crafts and Commerce of the Sardinia Region with the main aim of promoting both high-level tennis and the Sardinian territory as an ideal springboard for the international careers of young talents.

The goal of each ITF tournament, indeed, revolves around giving the future stars of tennis the opportunity to earn valuable points in the ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) and WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) rankings, respectively the two organizations that regulate men’s and women’s professional circuits worldwide. But that’s not all: match after match, athletes can acquire the technical and mental skills needed to compete at increasingly higher levels and access more prestigious tournaments, such as the Grand Slams or the ATP 500 and 1000 and ATP Challenger tournaments (which also include Sardegna Open, that this year took place from April 29 to May 5 at the prestigious Cagliari Tennis Club), paving the way for brilliant careers in professional tennis.

It is no coincidence that the red clay courts of the ASD Sports Academy in recent years has been the stage for true legends of contemporary tennis. Among these, the Italian Jannik Sinner certainly stands out, one of the strongest Italian tennis players of all time, who right here, in 2019, won his first clay tournament, an ITF worth $25.000, the prelude to the great triumph at the ATP in Umag in 2022. Other champions who have been to Forte Village before are the Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas, who won two of the first clay titles in 2016, beating the Norwegian Casper Ruud in the final, ranked no. two in the world in September 2022.

Among the great stars who have shone here in Sardinia, there is also Matteo Berrettini, who in 2015 achieved his first international title on the courts of Forte Village, succeeding in a $10.000 tournament, Lorenzo Sonego, with three victories, two in 2015 and one in 2017, in addition to ten overall trophies he won in his extraordinary career, but also Matteo Arnaldi, Lorenzo Musetti, Andrea Vavassori and the Florentine Flavio Cobolli, who in 2019 played his first final in a $25.000 tournament, preceding the call for the Davis Cup.

No less important the team of female athletes who made a significant boost to their international careers right in Santa Margherita di Pula. For example, the Czech Barbora Krejcikova, world no. two and winner of Roland Garros in 2021, and the Spanish Paula Badosa Gibert, also a former world no. two, but back in 2022. And still the Greek champion Maria Sakkari, the Canadian Bianca Andreescu, former WTA no. four and hard court specialist, who won her only clay-court tournament here in 2017, and the Latvian Jelena Ostapenko, who in 2014 got her stunning introduction to professional tennis with an exceptional hat-trick before conquering Roland Garros in 2017.

Even Italian women tennis players have found glory on the island to begin and consolidate their international careers: Jasmine Paolini, currently ranked world no. five and a finalist at Roland Garros and Wimbledon in 2023, lifted one of her first trophies here in 2016, while Martina Trevisan, ranked no. eighteen last year, has won half of her twelve titles on clay, with her first victory dating back to 2014, and Deborah Chiesa from Trentino won the second of her tournaments in 2017.

Results that are certainly worthy of note, which year after year confirm the great attraction of Sardinian ITF tournaments – and 2024 surely makes no exception.

ITF Tournaments 2024: let’s head to the finals between great emotions and new promises

Just over two weeks away from the ITF Tournaments Sardinia 2024 finals, which this year were characterized by the alternation of twelve tournaments – six combined between men and women – and a total prize pool of €300.000 (€25.000 for each single tournament), there is certainly no shortage of emotions and twists.

At the present moment, the men’s singles competition is dominated by Polish Daniel Michalski, who collected his fifth title in three years on the clay courts of Forte, followed by Spanish Carlos Sanchez Jover and Ukrainian Oleksandr Ovcharenko, while for what regards the women’s singles competition the Czech Julie Struplova, Austrian Julia Grabher and French Sara Cakarevic have excelled so far. It should be noted that, despite the chance to compete in multiple tournaments at the same venue, no athlete has managed to succeed twice in a row.

Moving on to the men’s doubles, Julian Ocleppo (son of former davisman Gianni) took the lead with two wins, both achieved teaming up with local athletes: one alongside the “Sinner from L’Aquila” Andrea Picchione and the second with the 27-year-old from Rovereto Giovanni Oradini. The winner’s spot on the podium in the third tournament was taken up instead by the Czechs Dominik Kellovsky and Martin Krumich.

And three couples led the rankings in the women’s doubles, instead: the Spanish Aliona Bolsova with the Dutch Eva Vedder, the Polish Daria Kuczer together with Swedish Lisa Zaar, and the Greek Sapfo Sakellaridi in team with Romanian Arina Vasilescu.

For what concerns Italians, two appearances in men’s singles finals are worth mentioning, that were Niccolò Catini and Gianluca Cadenasso, and as many in the women’s, with Nuria Brancaccio and Matilde Paolini, in addition to the finals of the duo Jacopo Bilardo/Augusto Virgili and Stefano Reitano in men’s category, and then Silvia Ambrosio with the couple Noemi Basiletti/Vittoria Paganetti in women’s division.

Now, all that’s left to to is waiting for the last, highly anticipated matches of these exciting tournaments to discover the ultimate winners: and why not do it directly from the stands of the ASD Sports Academy tennis courts in Santa Margherita di Pula, staying at the magnificent facilities of Forte Village, winner of the prestigious acknowledgment “World’s Leading Resort” at the World Travel Awards for over twenty consecutive years, a true Oscar for the tourism industry.

A location characterized by elegant and comfortable environments, designed to give the best well-being to guests, but also – above all – very close to the twelve clay courts where the final matches of the Sardinia ITF Tournaments 2024 will be played, for a stay fully dedicated to great sport, relaxation, and all the emotions that only the Sardinian land can convey.

For further information on the ITF Tournaments and all the accommodation options, please phone call to the number +390709218977 or write an email to tennis.reception@fortevillage.com.

Do you want to watch the exciting finals of the ITF Tournaments 2024 and experience a dream holiday in a true paradise? Discover Forte Village Resort in Sardinia