Lukas Klein the new king of the ATP Challenger Tour with back-to-back titles

Lukas Klein continues to be one of the standout performers on the ATP Challenger Tour. Just one week after capturing the title at the San Marino Open, the 27-year-old Slovak backed up that success with another impressive triumph, this time at the Dialectic Zug Open in Switzerland.

In Sunday’s final, Klein overcame fourth-seeded Frenchman Harold Mayot 6-2, 6-7(4), 6-4 in a fiercely contested battle to lift his second Challenger trophy of the month. Ranked World No. 147, Klein secured his spot in the championship match with a string of notable victories, starting with sixth seed Santiago Rodriguez Taverna of Argentina, followed by Swiss wild card entry Henry Bernet, second-seeded Marc-Andrea Huesler of Switzerland, and Swiss qualifier Jakub Paul.

Klein controlled the final with his powerful serve, firing 11 aces and winning 54 per cent of the total points played. After one hour and 45 minutes, he sealed the win and celebrated another key milestone in his career.

“I am very happy with this week and the week before. I have never won back-to-back Challenger titles. I am very excited,” Klein said during the on-court ceremony. “I enjoyed the week here, although it wasn’t easy for the fans when we had some rain delays. Everything worked 100 per cent. Thanks to everyone involved in the tournament.”

This latest title marks the fifth ATP Challenger title of Klein’s career. Along with the trophy, he collected €25,740 ($29,865) in prize money and earned 125 ATP Ranking points.

Budkov Kjaer triumphs at Tampere Open

Norwegian teenager Nicolai Budkov Kjaer clinched the title of the 43rd edition of the Tampere Open, the longest-running tournament on the ATP Challenger Tour. The 18-year-old Oslo native outlasted Frenchman Sascha Gueymard Wayenburg 6-7(5), 7-6(2), 6-2 in Sunday’s singles final.

Budkov Kjaear, who earned his maiden win on the ATP Tour two weeks ago in Bastad against Thiago Monteiro, battled his way into the championship match in Finland with wins over Alex Barrena of Argentina, No. 8 seed Frederico Ferreira Silva from Portugal, Mathys Erhard of France and Czech qualifier Hynek Barton.

The World No. 153 broke Gueymard Wayenburg’s serve five times and won 53 per cent of the total points played to seal victory in two hours and 44 minutes.

“It was a great final. I am super happy with the win,” Budkov Kjaer said. “It was a tough match but I am happy to be through. It was fun out competing in front of a cool crowd.”

By winning his second ATP Challenger Tour career title, Budkov Kjaer earned €12,980 {$15,060) in prize money as well as 75 ATP Ranking points.

“It means a lot. I am still young and have many things to improve but it is another step in the right direction,” he added.

Loffhagen claims maiden Challenger title in Segovia

George Loffhagen captured the biggest title of his career on Sunday, winning the 39th edition of the Open Castilla y León Villa de El Espinar. The 24-year-old Brit edged Spain’s Nicolas Alvarez Varona, also 24, in a gripping three-set final 7-6(4), 6-7(4), 6-4 after two hours and 57 minutes of high-quality tennis.

Loffhagen, who had never reached an ATP Challenger semifinal before this week, became the first British player to win the singles title at the prestigious Spanish hard-court tournament, having already made history as the first British finalist in the Province of Segovia. While four Britons have previously lifted the doubles trophy, no one from the UK had triumphed in singles until now.

With the victory, Loffhagen jumps 57 spots in the ATP Rankings to a career-high of World No. 235.

Lajal lifts trophy at Cranbrook Tennis Classic

In Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, Mark Lajal claimed the title of the third edition of the Cranbrook Tennis Classic. The unseeded Estonian overcame US-American wild card entry Andres Martin 6-7(7), 7-5, 7-6(9) in Sunday's singles final.

Lajal advanced to the championship match with wins over Australian Omar Jasika, No. 6 seed August Holmgren of Denmark, British qualifier Arthur Fery and Yu Hsiou Hsu of Chinese Taipei.

The 22-year-old Tallinn native withstood nine aces in the final and broke his rival's serve four times to prevail after three hours and 22 minutes.

“I was getting pretty tired,” said Lajal, who had to save three match points. “The third set, I started feeling my legs slowly cramping, but I just stuck through it, saw that I was doing good enough job. I didn’t have to play long rallies. I tried to make the points shorter, tried to stay in the moment and not think about being tired.”

This was Lajal's third appearance in an ATP Challenger Tour final and his second title. In June 2023, he defeated Beibit Zhukayev in straight sets at the Little Rock Open in Arkansas. He lost his second final last August in Zhangjiagang to Japan's Yasutaka Uchiyama. Lajal earned $22,730 in prize money as well as 100 ATP Ranking points.

Hard and clay-court action across Europe

🇵🇹 The ATP Challenger Tour continues its European hard-court swing this week with the Eupago Porto Open in Portugal. Local hero Jaime Faria leads the field, while Switzerland’s Marc-Andrea Huesler and Spaniards Martin Landaluce and Daniel Mérida are among the top contenders for the title.

🇩🇪 Meanwhile, the Challenger Tour also returns to Germany for the fifth edition of the Platzmann Open, which will be held for the first time at TC Rot-Weiß Hagen. Top seed Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands will face a qualifier in his opening match. Lithuania’s Vilius Gaubas is seeded second. An intriguing all-German clash awaits fans in the first round, as Justin Engel faces Daniel Masur. Masur was granted a wildcard originally intended for Mees Röttgering, who withdrew due to injury.

🇨🇿 At the Svijany Open in Liberec, Czech Republic, Federico Coria of Argentina is the top seed at the €91,250 ($105,876) clay-court tournament. He will compete for the title alongside countryman Santiago Rodriguez Taverna, Britain’s Jack Pinnington Jones, and Italy’s Stefano Travaglia.

Challenger Tour continues in North America and Asia

🇺🇲 The North American hard-court swing also continues this week. At the Lexington Open in Kentucky, top seed Nishesh Basavareddy leads the field, with fellow US-American Eliot Spizzirri seeded second. Britain’s Dan Evans and Denmark’s August Holmgren are also strong contenders for the title.

🇰🇿 In Central Asia, the President’s Cup is underway in Astana, Kazakhstan. France’s Clement Chidekh heads the field, while Norwegian teenager Nicolai Budkov Kjaer will look to extend his hot streak. Russia’s Ivan Gakhov and Georgia’s Saba Purtseladze round out the group of favorites in the Kazakh capital.