The Napoli Cup was an outdoor hardcourt ATP 250 competition that took place in Naples, Italy.
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2022 Date: |
17 - 23 October |
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Category: |
ATP 250 |
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Surface: |
Clay |
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Location: |
Naples, Italy |
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Venue: |
Tennis Club Napoli |
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Players: |
28 players (2022 Napoli Cup ATP Entry List) |
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ATP Prize Money: |
612,000€ |
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ATP Points: |
250 for champion |
Tennis Club Napoli was the host venue for the Napoli Cup. For the 2022 season only, the Napoli Cup was awarded a one-year license by the ATP to hold a 250-level event. This honor followed the postponement of tennis events in China for the 2022 season after the COVID-19 pandemic.
In addition, the Napoli Cup replaced the former event, the Tennis Napoli Cup (also called the Capri Watch Cup). This competition took place before the Napoli Cup at the Tennis Club Napoli, but it was originally a Challenger-level tournament.
Before the event was upgraded for its special one-year ATP Tour status in 2022, 21 editions of the Tennis Napoli Cup took place. Many top players competed in the Challenger tier competition from 1995 to 2021. Some former winners in the singles draw included Richard Gasquet, David Ferrer, and Juan Carlos Ferrero.
However, the 2022 upgrade saw many elite-level players head to Southern Italy to compete in the tournament. Among the entrants for the one-off tournament were former ATP top 10 competitors Matteo Berrettini and Roberto Bautista Agut. Pablo Carreno Busta and Lorenzo Musetti were also among the top seeds to participate.
The eventual final of the Napoli Cup saw the two Italian stars of Berrettini and Musetti face off in the final. Fourth seed Musetti emerged as the tournament’s overall winner after he defeated his Italian compatriot in straight sets in the final.
Alongside the singles, the main draw was a 16-team doubles event. Here, the Australian pair of Matthew Ebden and John Peers reached the final and faced the Croatian-American duo of Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek. Dodig and Krajicek won the title after a three-set encounter in the final.
The only year the tournament was held as an ATP-level event was also marked by multiple controversies. First, the event was postponed due to terrible court quality, and during the tournament, a player was thrown out of the hotel room while playing a match.
