Stunning venue. Top-notch facilities. Prime location. Memorable atmosphere.
All of the above describe traits of the new-and-improved Dallas Open, where on Sunday Casper Ruud will face Denis Shapovalov for the title. The newly upgraded ATP 500 event has been a hit among players and fans alike.
Jamie Murray, the former No. 1 player in the PIF ATP Doubles Rankings, won the tournament two years ago when it was an ATP 250 event held at Southern Methodist University's tennis facility. The lefty, who is tournament director at Queen’s Club's HSBC Championships, was impressed by the event’s improvements at The Star, the world headquarters and practice facility of the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys.
“It’s a huge upgrade for sure. It obviously is a very unique facility that we’re playing in. We’re playing in a training facility for maybe the biggest American football franchise. The player facilities in terms of gym equipment, recovery centre, food, is very high level,” Murray said. “There’s so much space, no one is living on top of each other. There are four practice courts, which is unheard of really for an indoor tournament. So it’s a super easy week for the players, and I’m sure they’re all enjoying that aspect.
“And you’ve got pretty much all the top American guys here playing, which is great. It’s definitely got a bigger feel to it than before just in terms of everything: the venue, player field, just the atmosphere around the event as well.”
Although two non-Americans are facing off in the final, the top four players from the United States in the PIF ATP Rankings — Taylor Fritz, Tommy Paul, Ben Shelton and Frances Tiafoe — competed in the tournament, leading to a special atmosphere.
“I like the city a lot more than the level I’ve played at,” Tiafoe said after his first-round match. “I really enjoy tennis when you see on a Monday night I’m able to come out [and] I feel like they get really me behind me here… Outside of the Cowboys being a bad franchise, everything else is really good. But no, honestly, I love playing here and hope to perform well here.”
Tiafoe, a diehard Washington Commanders fan, was poking fun at his favourite team’s rivalry with the Dallas Cowboys. One of the cool features of the tournament is that the players and their support teams eat in the same dining hall as the Cowboys.
Just outside that area, which also had plenty of space and couches for the players to relax on, were two outdoor football fields. Before the tournament began, many players tried kicking field goals and throwing touchdowns.
Marcos Giron was forced to withdraw due to a neck injury, but the American was on site and enjoyed taking in the facility.
“This is pretty special. Dallas Cowboys, one of the most well-known franchises in the whole world, one of the biggest sporting places. So to be able to play the tournament where they practise is pretty cool,” Giron said. “I think they say everything is bigger in Texas, and this place is like that. The centre court is pretty awesome. It still has an intimate feel, but I really like the layout, it’s great. Being able to see the football practice facility right behind the courts is nice and it’s pretty cool.”
Brandon Nakashima added: “Similar to this tournament, it’s a new facility and being able to come here and play in the Dallas Cowboys’ practice facility is super exciting. Big fan of the NFL, so really excited here.”
As Murray pointed out, “the hotel is basically attached to the venue”, which made it a simple week for the ATP Tour stars in terms of commute. Many of the competitors stayed in a hotel so close that they could leave their room, take two elevators downstairs and be in the venue within a couple of minutes.
“I was really surprised, it’s really close [to] the hotel,” Yoshihito Nishioka said. “It’s pretty nice for players to be walking distance to the hotel room because I can go home right now in just one minute. Sometimes it takes like an hour. It’s sometimes very tough for players after a game or before a game.”
Most importantly, the fans have been thrilled throughout the week, including celebrities like three-time Olympic gold medalist Gabby Douglas, Cowboys legend DeMarcus Ware, Dallas Mavericks icon Dirk Nowitzki and current Maverick Klay Thompson. Kids have lined up for autographs and selfies as the players walk off the court and the competitors have returned the favour.
The second seed, Ruud, is Norwegian. But the crowd has treated the 26-year-old, like the rest of the field, as its own.
“I know that it makes me happy and smile, knowing that if I show up for a picture or do a signature for a kid, I know they're going to go home and have a happy rest of the day, most likely and have a smile on his or her face,” Ruud said. “That makes me happy. It's a very nice thing about this life that you can put joy in other people's lives and faces.”
