Facing the celebration of the 30 years of the Mexican Tennis Open, the director of the ATP 500, Raúl Zurutuza, reveals the pending dreams for a tournament that has become a benchmark in white sport for Latin America, which has seen the best in the world parade and now, after the recent inauguration of its new complex in Acapulco, looks forward to the future.
“Here it is important to talk about the team. We are calm, I think we have a great start sign and without the pressure of if the stadium is finished, we will be able to travel better. Today we feel happy, it is always a pleasure when we start Acapulco or Los Cabos as a company”, he comments after the initial flag of the XXX edition, which will take place from February 27 to March 4, 2023 and will have the participation of Carlos Alcaraz, Casper Ruud and Stefanos Tsitsipas as the first confirmed.
Regarding advancing the announcement, Raúl Zurutuza clarified that it has nothing to do with the offer of tennis events that the country will have in the coming months: “It had to do with the timing of having the No. 1 and 2 in the ranking at 1 and 2. It has to do with leaving on time and in shape. October is already very close to the event, so the public has more options and everyone decides what to do with their investments. I’m a true believer in competition, it makes you better, makes you more alert so that everything goes better, you learn from your rivals and from other tournaments. We are not worried, we are very cool and the reason is to have 1 and 2 in the ranking and Stefanos in 6. Having three Top 10 has always been an important part”.
A profitable tournament
Mextenis has established itself as the main tennis promoter in the countrybecause in addition to the success with the Mexican Open and the Los Cabos Open, which also opened a new venue in 2022, it brought Roger Federer in 2019 for The Greatest Match at the Plaza de Toros. Added to factors such as the visit of Novak Djokovic in 2017, experiencing the evolution of Rafael Nadal from 2005 to date in Acapulco and even being successful in granting a wild card to Carlos Alcaraz in 2021 before beginning his harvest of titles, there is no doubt that there is a key factor behind the prestige that the company boasts.
“The strategy is that there is a lot of relationship. We have a very good relationship with the agents and that will continue to pay off in the future. The company has many strengths that players find very attractive. I have been talking to Ruud’s agent for five months and I closed it after the US Open and the figure was in line. In this modern world of guarantees there is no money for everyone, it does not exist. We have to be very responsible for how we manage the finances of the company and where we are going. If one thing is certain, it is that the tournament has given the owners very good results and has allowed us to grow, because the tournament no longer has to invest for many years, we only sell and spend and try to make a profit,” adds Raúl.
Bet on youth
Faced with such a parade of talent, the obvious question for a tournament director is which players do you feel the AMT lineup lacks, but Zurutuza opts for the next generations: “I have many, but they are still young. There are two or three that I would not like to take out because I know they are important, bets, how do I make a 19 or 18-year-old guy fall in love with Acapulco? Not everyone we can give villa or penthouse. It is a job where everything has to be. How can the team make these young people, who have their minds elsewhere, look at Acapulco and tell their agents that they always want to come?
Lastly, it ensures that at the moment it is difficult to think of a pending dream, since today everything revolves around the event going well. “What I always look for is that we work in harmony. One thing that I loved about the 30-year campaign, designed by the Mextenis team, is the goal of being a team, but with you the press, the fans and the sponsors, we have achieved it. I don’t know if it happens in other events, but we are very focused on working on this harmony. I want to have a tournament that runs well, that flows, that these groups are happy and that on March 5 we can wake up and say ‘What the hell we are!’, as Chicharito would say”.
winners
Rafael Nadal, David Ferrer and Thomas Muster are the tournament’s most successful winners with four titles each.
Inclusion
Two women chair umpires starred in the singles and doubles finals in 2022, a historic event in an ATP tournament.
FCM
