Vienna's Erste Bank Open boasts an incredible field, with only drama guaranteed

VIENNA—The Austrian capital is once again in the tennis spotlight: from October 20 to 26, the 51st edition of the Erste Bank Open will take place at the Stadthalle in Vienna. The prestigious ATP 500 tournament has long been one of the most popular indoor events on the tour—highly regarded by players and fans alike for its world-class field, warm atmosphere, and outstanding organization.

📲 🖥️ Stream the Erste Bank Open this week on the Tennis Channel app

Sinner leads the field

World No. 2 Jannik Sinner headlines the draw and will open his title bid against Daniel Altmaier, a player he recently defeated at the Rolex Shanghai Masters.

Sinner first played in Vienna in 2019, when, ranked No. 119, he needed a wild card to enter the main draw. But even then, tournament director Herwig Straka recognized his potential.

“It’s only a matter of time before Jannik Sinner breaks into the Top 100. He will certainly play a decisive role in shaping the future of the ATP Tour,” he said back then.

👉 READ MORE: Inside Jannik Sinner's Vienna return

The Italian required another wild card in 2020, before his big breakthrough in 2021. After reaching the semifinals that year, he cracked the Top 10 of the ATP Rankings for the first time. In 2022 he advanced to the quarterfinals, before crowning his fifth and most recent Vienna campaign in 2023 with a dramatic final victory over Daniil Medvedev. The three-set battle, lasting three hours and four minutes, went down as one of the tournament’s greatest matches.

The Erste Bank Open has long held a special place in Sinner’s heart. At the 2021 trophy ceremony, after thanking his team in English, he charmed the sold-out Stadthalle by switching to his unmistakable South Tyrolean dialect: “Jetzt red ma amoi deitsch.” (“Now let’s speak German.”)

Sinner has often emphasized the special bond he feels with Vienna: “This is a great tournament that helped me with wild cards when I wasn’t high enough in the rankings to enter directly,” he said in 2023. “People in Vienna have always looked after me very well. I feel very comfortable here, so the Erste Bank Open will continue to be very important for me in the coming years.”

Zverev and other favorites

Second seed Alexander Zverev faces 81^st-ranked qualifier Jacob Fearnley in the first round, and would face another qualifier—Matteo Arnaldi—should he advance.

One of the standout first-round encounters was slated to be Lorenzo Musetti vs. Stefanos Tsitsipas, a battle between two stylish shot-makers who have both reached the semifinals in Vienna in the past two editions. Was, because Tsitsipas withdrew (the Greek was replaced in the draw by lucky loser Hamad Medjedovic). His head-to-head record against Musetti remains 5-2.

Further exciting matchups are also on the horizon, including Matteo Berrettini against Alexei Popyrin, and Tomas Machac against Flavio Cobolli, with the winner likely set to face Sinner in the second round.

Mixed feelings for Austrian players

Local favorite Jurij Rodionov reacted with a smile to his opening-round challenge during the main draw ceremony on Saturday.

The 25-year-old Austrian, currently ranked World No. 155, received a wild card into his home event and faced world No. 7 Alex de Minaur.

“It will be an interesting match. De Minaur on a fast hard court is probably not ideal. But you have to take what Niavarani drew,” joked Rodionov, referring to the draw made by Austrian comedian Michael Niavarani.

Rodionov defeated de Minaur in their only previous meeting, four years ago on grass in Stuttgart, but fell this time at home, 6-4, 6-1.

Another Austrian hopeful, Filip Misolic, entered the tournament with a wild card and a winnable first-round match against world No. 50 Camilo Ugo Carabelli. Misolic made the most of his opportunity, prevailing 7-5, 7-6 (6). He now leads Ugo Carabelli in their head-to-head, 2-1.

“Physically, I feel great, which is the most important thing,” Misolic said.

Though home fans were denied an all-Austrian clash in the round of 16—Rodionov and Misolic would have faced off, had they both won—there will be no shortage of must-see matches at the Erste Bank Open.