The final tournament of the Asian swing will take place at the 2024 Almaty Open from October 14th to 20th, and the draw for the ATP 250 event has been unveiled.
It might feel like the tournaments in Asia finish once the Shanghai Masters comes to an end, but that is not the case. There is a blockbuster final in Shanghai between Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic to decide the title in China.
The Almaty Open (previously called the Astana Open) was first held in 2020. It was added to the ATP calendar after several tournaments were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Djokovic is the most high-profile winner of the event in Kazakhstan. He secured the title when the event was an ATP 500 in 2022, overcoming Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final in straight sets.
Adrian Mannarino is the defending champion. The veteran Frenchman defeated Sebastian Korda in the final. Korda was set to return to the tournament but had to withdraw because of an elbow injury.
Mannarino is in a challenging section of the draw. He could face the No. 1 seed, Frances Tiafoe, in the quarterfinal, but he will need to beat Roman Safiullin in the opening round and either James Duckworth or Aleksandar Vukic in the second round.
As one of the top four seeds, Tiafoe receives a bye to guarantee his place in the round of 16. That will be followed by a match against Taro Daniel or a qualifier before a possible quarterfinal against the defending champion Mannarino.
The tournament has slightly more significance for Tiafoe than it otherwise might have. He is looking to put a furious meltdown at the umpire after his loss at the Shanghai Masters behind him, an act he had to apologize for.
Tomas Machac, who created headlines by beating Carlos Alcaraz in the quarterfinals of the Shanghai Masters, could meet Tiafoe in the semifinals. He has been drawn against the wild card Timofey Skatov in the opening round.
Karen Khachanov is the other seeded player in that quarter of the draw. The former Australian Open semifinalist receives a bye in the opening round and faces Fabio Fognini or Otto Virtanen in the round of 16.
On the other side of the draw, Francisco Cerundolo and Zhizhen Zhang are the top players in the third quarter. If they both manage to get past their other opponents, they will meet in the quarterfinals.
Alejandro Tabilo is the No. 2 seed and the highest-ranked player in the fourth and final quarter. The talented Fabian Marozsan and the former Cincinnati Open champion Borna Coric are possible quarterfinal opponents.
The second half of the draw seems particularly open. Among those players, there is no overwhelming favorite to reach the final, which often creates high drama for the fans attending the matches to enjoy.
There were great crowds in Astana last year. Hopefully, the tournament's new venue in Almaty will justify the decision to move there and create a memorable event for the fans and players to close the Asian swing.
2024 Almaty Open ATP Draw:
| Player 1 | Player 2 |
|---|---|
| Frances Tiafoe [1] | BYE |
| Taro Daniel | Qualifier |
| James Duckworth | Aleksandar Vukic |
| Roman Safiullin | Adrian Mannarino [8] |
| Karen Khachanov [3] | BYE |
| Otto Virtanen | Fabio Fognini |
| Qualifier | Beibit Zhukayev |
| Timofey Skatov | Tomas Machac [5] |
| Zhizhen Zhang [6] | Qualifier |
| Alexander Shevchenko | Qualifier |
| Justin Engel | Coleman Wong |
| BYE | Francisco Cerundolo [4] |
| Fabian Marozsan [7] | Borna Coric |
| Christopher O'Connell | Gabriel Diallo |
| Damir Dzumhur | Maximilian Marterer |
| BYE | Alejandro Tabilo [2] |
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