The 2017 edition of the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament is freighted with plenty of intrigue, though Rafael Nadal just dropped out in order to rest himself after an exhausting Australian Open. Nevertheless, the crowd in The Netherlands should find plenty of European contenders for this relatively lucrative ATP 500 tournament. While we’re not going to see the likes of Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray or Roger Federer at the 2017 Rotterdam event, we will see a number of second-tier players like David Goffin, Marin Cilic, Dominic Thiem and Grigor Dimitrov. It should be a fairly competitive event with a challenging field for whoever eventually makes their way through it.
The competition in the 32-player main draw begins on Monday, February 13.
Event Details
Event: ABN AMRO Tennis Tournament
Category: ATP World Tour – 500 Series
Date: February 13-19, 2017
Location: Ahoy Rotterdam – Rotterdam, The Netherlands
With a prize money allotment of just over 1.7 million Euros, the 500-point tournament is definitely worth pursuing for pros able to compete in it. Longtime tour professional and 1996 Wimbledon champion Richard Krajicek, one of the best Dutch tennis players ever, is the tournament director. He creates a very good experience for players and knows how to make them feel welcome in Rotterdam. This event has existed since 1972 – it has a deservedly strong and secure presence on the ATP Tour calendar. It’s a significant stop on the Tour even though the biggest names on the men’s side won’t be playing.
Points
Champion – 500 points
Runner-up – 300
Semifinal – 180
Quarterfinal – 90
Round-of-16 – 45 points
Former Champions and Results (5 Years)
Year Champion Runner-up Score
2016: Martin Klizan def. Gael Monfils, 6-7, 6-3, 6-1
2015: Stan Wawrinka def. Tomas Berdych, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4
2014: Tomas Berdych def. Marin Cilic, 6-4, 6-2
2013: Juan Martin del Potro def. Julien Benneteau, 7-6, 6-3
2012: Roger Federer def. Juan Martin del Potro, 6-1, 6-4
Player Info:
Marin Cilic is the top seed. He just got wiped off the court by Dustin Brown in Montpellier, France, so his form is not very encouraging coming into this event. The positive spin is that Cilic will come in rested, instead of having to play a full week of tennis and then make his way through the Rotterdam draw. Nevertheless, Cilic is not hitting on all cylinders. If he can get to the quarterfinals, it probably won’t be considered a bad week. The larger goal is to play his way into form before Indian Wells in March.
Dominic Thiem is the second seed. Thiem has scheduled more hardcourt tournaments in Acapulco before Indian Wells. He is still compressing his calendar, though he’ll have at least some rest in Holland after losing very early in the Sofia Open earlier this week. Scheduling so many tournaments cannot give Thiem the consistency and comfort level he needs in order to improve as a player. Thiem seems intent on learning the hard way.
David Goffin is the third seed. He defeated Thiem in the fourth round at the Australian Open to move to the quarterfinals. Goffin plays really well in some spots but has problems maintaining form, even more especially playing well against elite opposition. Rotterdam could give him a platform which will catapult him into a big 2017 season, but Goffin needs to earn respect before people give it to him and expect more of him,
Tomas Berdych is the fourth seed. He was crushed by Roger Federer in Melbourne. At the time, the loss looked embarrassing, given the uncertainties about Federer’s form after six months away from tour. However, when Federer won the Australian Open, that loss looked different. Berdych has a chance to make a statement in Rotterdam.
Grigor Dimitrov is the fifth seed. Purely based on form, he is the favorite to win the tournament. He almost beat Rafael Nadal in a four-hour, 56-minute Australian Open semifinal. If that version of Dimitrov shows up for the rest of the year, the Bulgarian could win his first major title and make the world top five.
Ahoy Rotterdam
The facility for the Rotterdam tournament was built in 1971 and has undergone several renovations spaced out at least every eight years if not more, the most recent being in 2011. The main stadium court is a multi-deck arena which houses over 15,800 fans, with other courts containing in the area of 4,000 fans.
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