"On a Wednesday in the desert last March, Reilly Opelka, the American with a cannon of a serve, was grinding out a tough match against French number one Arthur Rinderknech. Nearby, former US Open men's finalist Kei Nishikori beat Luca Nardi, part of the new wave of Italian talent, while Brazilian phenom Joao Fonseca closed out Pavel Kotov, who reached number 50 in the world in 2024."
"These matches could have been plucked right out of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells, the premier tournament on the pro tennis circuit outside Palm Springs and attended by more than 500,000 fans. But this was Phoenix, at the decidedly less prestigious Arizona Tennis Classic. Each year, the world's top tennis players descend on the US for the Sunshine Double-BNP in California followed by the Miami Open-those who were cut quickly from the former often stop in for some rallies in Arizona."
Matches at the Arizona Tennis Classic featured top players such as Reilly Opelka, Arthur Rinderknech, Kei Nishikori, Luca Nardi, Joao Fonseca, and Pavel Kotov, delivering high-level competition. The Arizona event provided a similar match quality to the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells but on a smaller, less crowded scale. Many players traveling the Sunshine Double use Phoenix as a stop between Indian Wells and the Miami Open. There were 116 ATP and WTA pro tournaments worldwide last year, yet most spectators focus on the four Grand Slam events. Smaller tournaments offer closer views, lower costs, and fewer organizational hassles than major championships.
Read at Conde Nast Traveler
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