Can Andrey Rublev defend his title in Hong Kong?

                                        

                                            (Andrey Rublev-Hong Kong. Credit: Zuma/Panoramic) 

The 2025 ATP season begins this week as world No. 8 Andrey Rublev will look to defend his title at the Bank of China Hong Kong Tennis Open (中銀香港網球公開賽), played at Victoria Park Tennis Centre in Causeway Bay, Hong Kong. The tournament is in its second year back on the men's side, not having played from the years 2003-2023. 

I think it's exciting for the ATP Tour to have a presence in Hong Kong once more. It's a beautiful city with a fabulous culture and global feel. It's the kind of city that professional tennis players should have a blast playing in. 

Rublev comes in as the top seed in the tournament with world No. 17 Lorenzo Musetti and world No. 19 Karen Khachanov as the number two and three seeds respectively. Given he's the only player ranked in the top ten globally in this tournament, Rublev naturally is the heavy favorite. Especially since he won the event last year. 

The Hong Kong Tennis Open will be Rublev's tune up event for the Australian Open, which will start in mid-January. Rublev has made back-to-back trips to the quarterfinals of the Australian Open with last year's title in Hong Kong helping him gain some positive momentum towards a second consecutive quarterfinal run. 

Considering that he failed to make the quarterfinals at the French Open, Wimbledon, and US Open last season, it's really important for Rublev to get off to a strong start this season and at least get back to the quarterfinals at the Australian Open for a third straight season. If Rublev is able to do so, that could set the tone for the kind of season that he is hoping to have, which is to get past the quarterfinals at a grand slam for the first time. 

Even though it's the first tournament of the season and is an ATP 250 event, this season's Hong Kong Tennis Open is actually quite important for Andrey Rublev. If he wants to make a run at the Australian Open, defending his title in Hong Kong would give him a lot of confidence. It'll be interesting to see how he does. 

ATPGuy.com on X (Twitter): @atp_guy 

ATPGuy.com on Facebook: @ATPGuyNation 

Ben Parker on Facebook, IG, Threads, X (Twitter), and Blue Sky: @slamdunk406 

The SAP Open in San Jose should return

 

                                    (Andy Roddick at the SAP Open-Credit: Kelley L. Cox/USA TODAY Sports)

Over the weekend for CardinalSportsReport.com, I covered the Stanford men's basketball game against No. 10 Oregon at the SAP Center in San Jose, California. It was a two-game showcase called the San Jose Tip-Off that also featured Cal against No. 23 San Diego State. 

Walking around the SAP Center brought back memories of the SAP Open, which I went to many times growing up. I got to see players like Andy Roddick, Andre Agassi, Mark Philippoussis, Lleyton Hewitt, and Milos Raonic among others. It was a fun tournament that had a rich history dating all the way back to 1889, making it the second oldest ongoing tennis tournament in the United States. It had been played in various locations across the Bay Area, settling in San Jose in 1994 until its final season in 2013. 

In addition to the names I listed above, other legends of the game such as Stan Smith, Arthur Ashe, John McEnroe, Brad Gilbert, Stefan Edberg, Michael Chang, and Pete Sampras also competed in the event. It had a rich history and had a really solid venue at SAP Center. 

Part of what led to the demise of the tournament was its status as an ATP 250 event. Being the lowest level of tournaments on the main ATP Tour made it hard for it to attract good players every year. And then that in turn led to attendance issues. That being said, the final season of the tournament featured a final between world No. 13 Milos Raonic and world No. 22 Tommy Haas with Raonic winning 6-4, 6-3. No. 16 John Isner was also playing, so it was still attracting top 20 talent. 

The best match I saw was a match involving Guillermo Cañas and some higher seeded guy. It might have been Philippoussis, but I'm not positive. But it was absolutely a thrilling night of tennis. I remember Cañas lost but played with tremendous heart. I think the fact that he was wearing his hat backwards inspired me to do the same in many of my high school tennis matches and tournaments that I played in. 

Other memories include Philippoussis and Roddick hammering massive serves that reached 140 mph type speeds, Andre Agassi playing late into the night, and spending time with my family in the process. While most people associate SAP Center with watching the San Jose Sharks play, for me it's the SAP Open. It was a fun, competitive tournament that was the only major ticket in town for men's professional tennis. Given it's such a hub for tennis, it only makes sense for the Bay Area to have an ATP tour event. I hope the SAP Open returns and if it does, I'll be sure to buy a ticket and watch some amazing tennis! 

ATPGuy.com on Facebook: @ATPGuyNation 

ATPGuy.com on X (Twitter): @atp_guy 

Ben Parker on Facebook, IG, Threads, X (Twitter), and Blue Sky: @slamdunk406