The grass court season is in full swing as the build-up to Wimbledon continues with the ATP Mallorca. This ATP 250 event is about to put on its fifth tournament on the Balearic Island of Palma and will see a host of top names compete.
Last year’s winner, Alejandro Tabilo, sadly will not return this year beacause of injury, howvere there are a host of household names appearing as Casper Ruud, Ben Shelton and Felix auger-Aliassime, all with the eyes of the prize, and to take momentum with them as all head to the third Grand Slam of the year in SW19.
Below, we look at the dates, schedule, favourites and where to watch so that you have all the information you need to enjoy what is set to be a thrilling week of tennis out in Mallorca.
Dates and schedule
The Mallorca Championships will take place this year from Sunday, June 22nd to Saturday, June 28th. Qualifying matches start on Saturday, June 21st and will also take place whilst main draw matches start from the 22nd. There are both singles and doubles matches taking place, with 28 competitors in the singles draw and 16 in the doubles. The top four seeds in the singles draw get a bye to the second round.
Schedule
Qualifying: June 21st - 22nd
Round 1: June 22nd - 24th
Round 2: June 24th - 25th
Quarter-finals: June 26th
Semi-finals: June 27th
Finals: June 28th
The Draw for the tournament is yet to be confirmed.
Players and favourites
Last year's champion and world number 55, Alejandro Tabilo, has pulled out days before the tournament starts because he has been suffering from a bone oedema, an accumulation of excess fluid within the bone marrow, in his wrist. Other names such as Gael Monfils and Kei Nishikori, and Jordan Thompson have also pulled out of this year’s tournament.
The highest seed playing in the singles draw is world number 10 Ben Shelton. The young American rose to his highest seeding after a great showing at the French Open and is one of the favourites to win. Another favourite is world number 16 Casper Ruud, who struggled with a knee injury in his second-round loss at Roland Garros recently. It is yet to be seen what level of fitness the Norwegian has in this competition.
Canadian star Félix Auger-Aliassime, USA’s Alex Michelsen and the Netherlands’ Tallon Griekspoor are all notable other names who will be playing in Mallorca. 17-year-old Justin Engel, Australian Rinky Hijikata, and the always enjoyable, for one reason or another, Fabio Fognini have recently been announced as wildcard entrants for the tournament.
Where to watch on TV or live stream in the UK?
In the UK, the ATP Mallorca Open will be shown live on Sky Sports from Sunday, June 22nd. You will be able to watch the whole tournament on either Sky Sports Tennis or Sky Sports+. It will also be streamed online on the Tennis TV website with a subscription.