• Alexander Zverev, the tournament’s top seed, will debut against his compatriot Daniel Altmaier, while defending champion Alex de Miñaur will begin his journey against Japan’s Taro Daniel. 
• As for the Mexicans, Rodrigo Pacheco will try to advance to the second round against Serbian Dusan Lajovic and Ernesto Escobedo against Austrian Sebastian Ofner. 

Acapulco, February 24, 2024.- With the presence of American tennis player Frances Tiafoe and the general director of Mextenis, Alvaro Falla, the draw for the main draw of the XXXI edition of the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presented by HSBC was held. 

The top seeds already know their path to the ATP 500 title. 

Germany’s Alexander Zverev (No. 6), who is the tournament’s top seed, will debut against his compatriot Daniel Altmaier (No. 55), while Denmark’s Holger Rune (No. 7), the tournament’s second favorite, will face a player coming from the qualifying round. 

Defending champion, Australian Alex de Miñaur (No. 9) will start his journey against Japanese Taro Daniel (No. 62) looking to defend his title and with the aim of continuing his ascent in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings after reaching the best position of his career last week.

American Taylor Fritz (No. 10), seeded fourth, will face Italian Matteo Arnaldi (No. 41) in the first round, while Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas (No. 11) will face Russian Roman Safiullin (No. 38) in his first match.

In other first round matches, the following are the clashes of the American players: Tommy Paul (No. 14) will play against British Jack Draper (No. 53), Frances Tiafoe (No. 15) will compete against Australian Max Purcell (No. 51), while Ben Shelton (No. 16) will face British Daniel Evans (No. 42).

Meanwhile, British Cameron Norrie (No. 23) will face German Dominik Koepfer (No. 57), Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime (No. 29) will play against a qualifier, as well as the finalist in Los Cabos, Australian Jordan Thompson (No. 40).

As for the Mexicans, Rodrigo Pacheco will try to advance to the second round against Serbian Dusan Lajovic (No. 58) and Ernesto Escobedo against Austrian Sebastian Ofner (No. 37). 

The third player to receive an invitation to the tournament, Argentine Diego Schartzman (No. 115) will debut in the Acapulco tournament against Serbian tennis player Miomir Kecmanovic (No. 54). 

“It’s an important draw, all of an incredible level. We wish him good luck and hope they all do very well. It has been a great experience that we have lived with the two tournaments (Los Cabos and Acapulco), it has been a challenge, but it will be a nice experience and, without a doubt, it is a great fortune to have both tournaments,” commented Alvaro Falla, general director of Mextenis. 

American Frances Tiafoe also gave his first impressions about the draw, “I am very happy. It’s my fifth time here and I feel very good in the tournament because they are great fans,” he said. 

The main draw activity starts on Monday, February 26. This Saturday and Sunday will be the qualifying tournament that will distribute four tickets to the main draw.

• The Australian tennis player’s record during 2023 was 46 wins and 26 losses, which allowed him to enter the Top 10 in January 2024 
• In 2023 Alex de Miñaur reached five finals, one of which he won.

Mexico City, February 15, 2024.- Tennis player Alex de Miñaur will arrive at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presented by HSBC as the reigning champion after defeating American Tommy Paul last year in a match that was decided in three sets, but that was not the only final the Australian reached, as he was close to lifting four other championships throughout the season to consolidate the best of his career.

After Acapulco, the Australian reached the prelude to four titles, but did not have the same luck as in Mexico. 

In June, the Australian reached the final of the Queen’s Club in London, a tournament that serves as preparation for Wimbledon, where he lost to the Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz after leaving the likes of Andy Murray, Diego Schwartzman, Adrian Mannarino and Holger Rune in the way.

In July he returned to Mexico to take part in the Mifel Tennis Open by Telcel Oppo 2023 in Los Cabos and played in the final match against Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas.

Weeks after Los Cabos, Alex de Miñaur reached the final of the Toronto Masters, but did not have a good match and was defeated by the Italian Jannik Sinner, thus adding his third lost final of the year.

Curiously, in November he faced Sinner again, but now in the Davis Cup Finals held in Malaga, Spain. 

His record during 2023 was 46 wins and 26 losses, which allowed him to enter the Top 10 of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings in January and achieve the best position of his career by reaching the 10th step. 

At the beginning of the 2024 season, the 24-year-old Australian player lost in the round of 16 of the Australian Open against German Alexander Zverev; however, in Acapulco he will try to defend his title and continue climbing positions in the ranking.

• The Norwegian tennis player shared his ‘Spotify Wrapped’ confirming his taste for the music of Canadian singer ‘The Weeknd’
• The tournaments in the American continent are going well for the Oslo-born player and he will be looking for a new title in Mexican soil

Mexico City, January 19, 2023.- Casper Ruud’s passion for sports – not only tennis, but also golf – is complemented by his extreme taste for music, especially the music of Canadian singer and producer Abel Makkonen Tesfaye, better known as ‘The Weeknd’.

Each year, the Spotify platform shares a summary (Spotify Wrapped) of what each user listens to most frequently over the past twelve months. In 2023, what the Norwegian tennis player listened to the most was precisely The Weeknd.

On several occasions, the Oslo-born tennis player and winner of 10 titles in the ATP circuit, has shared his taste for music and has uploaded different videos to his social networks enjoying the concerts of the Canadian artist.

Casper Ruud’s love for sports is not limited to tennis, a passion he inherited from his father and coach, Christian Ruud, who until before his son appeared on the ATP circuit, was considered the best Norwegian tennis player in history.

When Christian Ruud retired, he started going to the golf courses and it was in those recreational times that Casper also took a liking to this sport to the extent that at the age of 14 he had to decide whether he would continue his sports career with a racket or with a golf club, we all know how this story ended.

Casper Ruud’s career has been meteoric since that August 2015 when he started scoring in the ATP ranking in the 1645th place, until his best position in his career, climbing up to the number 2 ATP ranking in December 2022.

The tournaments in the American continent are given to the Norwegian tennis player, since the first title in his career he won in Buenos Aires (2020) and he did it again in 2022, he also won in San Diego, California in 2021 and hopefully in 2024 he will be among the contenders for the title in Acapulco.

• The winners lifted their third career title.

Acapulco, March 4 – Austrians Alexander Erler and Lucas Miedler closed a dream week at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presented by HSBC and after eliminating the top seeds in the semifinals won the doubles title.

Erler and Miedler beat Americans Nathaniel Lammons and Jackson Withrow 7-6(9), 7-6(3).
In the first set the Austrians took a 3-2 lead with a break in the fifth game and then the Americans equalized with a break in the tenth game for 5-5, both defended their serve and reached 6-6 to define in a tiebreak that fell on the Austrians’ side.

The second set was practically a copy of the first with a break in favor of the Americans in the seventh game at 3-4 and for the Austrians at 5-5. Then they came back to define in the tiebreak to win the match and the title.

For Erler and Miedler, 56 and 57 in the doubles rankings, it was their third career title. They previously won in Kitzbuhel in 2021 and Vienna 2022.

• The Australian eliminates Holger Rune to reach the title match. His opponent presented physical problems from the second forward.

Acapulco, March 4th – The Abierto Mexicano Telcel presented by HSBC had a surprise in store on the second to last day of the XXX edition. While the ranking said that Taylor Fritz and Holger Rune could face each other in the final, Tommy Paul and Alex De Minaur each giving the surprise in the semifinals by reaching the final match.

The Australian came into the match against Rune without loosing a set in the whole tournament. De Minaur faced his toughest test so far and although the match did not start in the best way, he managed the comeback to get the ticket to the final and his first victory over Holger.

Rune took the first set after showing a great level, as he had done during the tournament. With his serve he had very few faults and soon took a 6-3 lead to dream about the final.

However, Alex remained competitive and saved several break points to hold on to the second set. Rune’s physical problems began to appear and so did the errors, which cost the Dane the possibility of closing the match in straight sets, allowing the Australian to even the scores.

De Minaur took advantage of his opponent’s vulnerability and quickly took a 3-0 lead in the final set. Rune’s level dropped along with his physicality. Holger refused to back down, but it became increasingly difficult for him to keep  the pace of his opponent. Alex closed out the match with a final score of 3-6, 7-5 and 6-2.

“I’m very happy because it was a very big effort and there is one more match left, so I´ll try to enjoy and play the best tennis possible. It will be a completely new day and I’m ready for the final battle. The support of the fans here in Acapulco is something incredible. Staying until 3 o’clock in the morning”, shared De Minaur after getting the win, knowing what awaits him in the final.

• The winners will receive 500 points and the finalists 300.

Acapulco, March 3rd – On the fifth and second to last day of the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presented by HSBC, the pairs that will dispute the final in the doubles tournament were defined.

The duo formed by Alexander Erler and Lucas Miedler, both from Austria, were the surprise pair in the AMT doubles final after beating the top seeds Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski, from the Netherlands, 6-4, 4-6, 10-4.

The Austrians will face Nathaniel Lammons and Jackson Withrow of the United States in the final, who defeated Sweden’s Andre Goransson and Japan’s Ben McLachlan 5-7, 7-6(2), 13-11.

The four seeded couples fell back and now there will be a new champion couple in Acapulco. In addition to the trophy, the winners will receive 500 points and 123,710 dollars and the runners-up 300 points and $65,980 dollars.

• The Dane made it to the semifinals after beating Berrettini.
• He shared the importance of staying focused to try to reach the final.

Acapulco, March 3.- The lower part of the main draw suffered surprise exits, both the elimination of Casper Ruud and the retirement of Matteo Berrettini. However, Holger Rune raises his hand as the main favorite for the title in that section. For the Dane, the crowd has been a factor, as has his concentration.

“I think the fans are amazing, they have shown me a lot of support at times, they have great energy. I really enjoy playing in Mexico,” Rune recalls about his first participation in a professional tournament in our country.

Regarding what he might encounter with De Minaur, Holger remembers the times he has had to face him and the complex challenge that the Australian means. He recognizes that he will have to be focused to have a chance of taking the match.

“I expect a tough match. Alex always offers tough matches. I played against him twice last year, it was very tough. I have to be 100%, be sharp, take the things I did well today for tomorrow and go for it, that’s what I did today,” Rune said.

“At the moment I take one match at a time. I try to focus on tomorrow’s match. I don’t even remember who are in the other semifinal, so I just focus on Alex tomorrow. I have to be 100% focused on my thing, go out and have fun,” expressed the Dane.

Beyond Matteo’s withdrawal on Thursday night, Holger highlights the good level he showed against one of the toughest opponents of the tournament. He then commented that he will need to be just as focused for his semifinal match.

“I was feeling very good. I think I was playing very disciplined, very solid, I was sticking to the tactic almost every point. Very happy with how I handled the situation. Naturally wish Berrettini the best, it’s never good to end a match like that but if I look at it from my side I played a very solid match,” Holger explained.

• Taylor wins again in straight sets to reach the semifinals of the tournament and extended his winning streak against Tiafoe with a 6-1 record in his favor.

Acapulco, March 2nd – The American (US) Taylor Fritz, third seed and also in great shape, defeated his compatriot Frances Tiafoe 6-3, 6-4 in the quarterfinals of the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presented by HSBC and raises his hand to become the top favorite for the title in Acapulco. The American is still without losing a set after coming from behind against John Isner and is in the semifinals.

Fritz took the match against Tiafoe, who put up a fight but not enough to hold off the current No. 5 in the world. The direct match already looked favorable towards Taylor, but in the AMT he confirmed his condition of favorite with a more than convincing performance in the Arena GNP Seguros stadium.

The American conceded four break points during the whole match, but he managed to save them both with his opponent’s hits and misses. Tiafoe, on the other hand, only faced three break points but gave up his serve on a couple of occasions in the first set, enough for Fritz to take the first set and then the victory.

Taylor commanded from the back of the court. His forehand became his main weapon taking the initiative first. In defense he was also very correct and made very few unforced errors, most of them when he was on the return and had more room to try new things.

The crowd tried to encourage Tiafoe to have a longer match, but the Marylander was unable to convert any of the break points that would have brought him back into the match. Frances had to settle for a couple of points that caused the unanimous applause of the audience that enjoyed the duel between Americans that ended with a 6-4 in the second set.

Taylor Fritz’s opponent in the semifinals will be another American: Tommy Paul. The Australian Open semifinalist also delivered a convincing performance against Mackenzie McDonald, whom he defeated with a double 6-2.

• The American advanced to the semifinals of the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presented by HSBC.
• Alex de Minaur also advanced after eliminating Japan’s Taro Daniel.

Acapulco, March 2 – The American Tommy Paul, seeded seventh, showed that the semifinal of the Australian Open was not a coincidence, that he is living his best moment as a professional tennis player and that he did not come to Acapulco just to enjoy the good weather. At 25 years old and ranked No. 23 in the ATP ranking, his result in the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presented by HSBC catapults him to be a protagonist in the upcoming tournaments.

In the round of the best eight he defeated his compatriot Mackenzie McDonald in just one hour by 6-2, 6-2 and now he will face another representative of the American team, the world No. 5, Taylor Fritz.

With a solid first serve at 77% efficiency, the quarterfinal challenge for the New Jersey-born Paul seemed like a cakewalk after he broke serve to the No. 62 on four occasions. However, on Friday against Fritz he will have to be at his best as he trails his contemporary 2-1 in the head-to-head.

In the second round at the Arena GNP Seguros stadium, the dream of Japanese surprise package Taro Daniel (No. 125), who had eliminated top seed Casper Ruud in three sets, came to an end when he faced Australian Alex de Minaur. The No. 22, who in turn had eliminated Mexican Rodrigo Pacheco in the first round, had few complications and in one hour and 38 minutes, defeated his Japanese rival by the same score 6-2, 6-2. Now he faces the biggest challenge of his week in Acapulco by reaching the semifinals.

• The Baja Californian player is the best professional tennis player Mexico has ever produced

Acapulco, March 1st – The organizers of the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presented by HSBC paid tribute to a legend of Mexican tennis: Raul Ramírez, the best professional tennis player the country has ever produced.

On the court of the Arena GNP Seguros stadium, Ramírez’s family received a tribute to his outstanding and brilliant career, which was recognized by the fans who gave him a long applause.

The Mexican was ranked No. 4 in the world singles rankings and No. 1 in doubles in November of 1976. During his career, which lasted from 1973 to 1984, Ramírez won 60 titles, a few achievements that brought greatness to Mexican tennis.

Of those titles, 19 were in singles and 60 in doubles, including the Rome Masters (1975) and Monte Carlo (1978). He was also the only Mexican to have reached the semifinals in singles at Wimbledon in 1976.

Ramírez served as an inspiration for his predecessors, shining in an era in which he competed with great players of his time, among them, Björn Borg, Guillermo Vilas, Illie Nastase & Jimmy Connors.