Tel Aviv Open 2022: Men's draw, schedule, players, prize money breakdown and more
The ATP tour is heading to Israel for the first time since 1996 as the country is set to host the Tel Aviv Open from September 26 - October 2.
Former World No. 1 Novak Djokovic headlines the field as the star attraction. The Serb has been absent from the tour since winning his 21st Major title at Wimbledon. He was unable to compete in tournaments in North America due to vaccine requirements.
Djokovic, who recently returned to action at the Laver Cup, is the top seed at the Tel Aviv event. 2014 US Open champion Marin Cilic is seeded second, with World No. 17 Diego Schwartzman and World No. 34 Maxime Cressy rounding out the top four seeds.
2020 US Open winner Dominic Thiem was awarded a wildcard, along with Hamad Mededovic and Yshai Oliel. Karen Khachanov, Tommy Paul and Alex Molcan were some of the other players scheduled to compete but withdrew from the tournament due to various reasons.
An exciting week of tennis is set to unfold in Israel, so here's all the relevant information about the Tel Aviv Open:
What is the Tel Aviv Open?
The Tel Aviv Open was an annual stop on the ATP tour from 1978 to 1996, with the exception of 1982 when it wasn't held. It was then held as a Challenger event in 1998 and 1999. Jimmy Connors is the most high-profile winner of the tournament, winning his final career title here in 1989.
The event was set to be revived in 2014 but was canned due to security risks in the region. It is now back in an all-new avatar and considering the fresh start, this will be marked as the first edition of the event.
It is classified as an ATP 250 event on the ATP tour.
Venue
The tournament will take place at the Expo Tel Aviv in Tel Aviv, Israel.
Players
The top four seeds have received a bye into the second round. Novak Djokovic and Diego Schwartzman are the highest seeds in the top half of the draw. The former could meet Tallon Griekspoor in the last eight, while the latter could be up against Aslan Karatsev.
Tel Aviv ATP 250 Main Draw Singles https://t.co/GDxzRBHajY
Marin Cilic and Maxime Cressy headline the bottom half of the draw. Dominic Thiem is up against Laslo Djere in the first round and a win would see him square off against Cilic in the second.
Sebastian Korda will take on a qualifier in the opening round and could set up a second-round date with Cressy. Botic van de Zandschulp and Adrian Mannarino are other players to look out for in this section of the draw.
Schedule
The qualifying rounds start on September 25 and will carry over the next day as well. The main draw begins on Monday, September 26, with the first and second matches being played until Thursday, September 29.
The quarterfinals, semifinals and finals will take place on Friday, Saturday and Sunday respectively, from September 30 to October 2.
Prize Money
The total prize money for the inaugural edition of the Tel Aviv Open is $949,475. The winner will walk away with a cheque worth $144,415 along with 250 ranking points. Here's a detailed breakdown of the prize money and ranking points:
Where to watch
Viewers in the US, Australia and Canada can watch the Tel Aviv Open live on the following channels and sites:
USA: All matches will be broadcast on Tennis Channel.
Australia: All matches will be telecast on beIN Sports.
Canada: Viewers in Canada can watch all the matches on TSN.
For more information regarding the broadcast of matches, click here.