The 2016 Nice Open will start on Sunday, as is consistent with any tournament which begins the week before one of the four Grand Slam events. The tournament starts on Sunday so that it can finish on Saturday, giving the participants at least two days off before they start the first round of the Grand Slam tournament on Tuesday. The Grand Slam tournament which follows Nice is, of course, the French Open. This is almost the end of the spring clay season and there will be another brief European clay swing in July, after Wimbledon.
This is an important event because the French Open is going to attract the big names the following week and we want to get a clear (or clearer) understanding of who is in good form right now or who is struggling. Although this isn’t a huge event, it will give us a good indication of what some of the smaller players can do at the French Open. Players who thrive at an event like this might be a good bet in the early rounds at Roland Garros to spring an upset or to surprise a bigger seed that’s not in form. If you keep an eye out for what happens at the Nice Open, you’ll be better prepared to make those calls at the second Grandslam of the year.
The competition in the 32-player main draw for Nice begins on Sunday, May 15.
Event Details
Event: Nice Open
Category: ATP 250 Series
Date: May 15 – 21, 2016
Location: Nice Lawn Tennis Club – Nice, France
The 2016 Nice Open is all about giving players outside the top 10 a chance to get a few rankings points for the middle of the year, and to polish their games in time for the French Open, which begins the busiest period of the tennis season, the run from Roland Garros through Wimbledon. The prize money is 450,000 Euros.
The points structure in a 250-point tournament offers 250 points towards the winner’s ranking. A runner-up finish is worth 150 points. A semifinal result is 90 points, and a quarterfinal appearance offers 45 points.
Former Champions and Results
Year Champion Runner-up Score
2015 – Dominic Thiem def. Leonardo Mayer – 6-7, 7-5, 7-6
2014 – Ernests Gulbis def. Federico Delbonis – 6-1, 7-6
2013 – Albert Montanes def. Gael Monfils – 6-0, 7-6
2012 – Nicolas Almagro def. Brian Baker – 6-3, 6-2
2011 – Nicolas Almagro def. Victor Hanescu – 6-7, 6-3, 6-3
Player Info:
The top seed is Dominic Thiem, who just lost in the Rome Masters quarterfinals to Kei Nishikori. By losing on Friday in the quarterfinals, Thiem might have given himself a chance to win a few matches at this tournament. Had he reached the semifinals in Rome, he would have had only one day off before starting this tournament. Now he will have two. Thiem wants to play as much tennis as possible. He’s not taking any sort of break before the French Open. It’s not what most players would do, but it’s his choice. He’s been in good form recently and a win here could give him ample momentum heading into Roland Garros.
The second seed is Gilles Simon, who didn’t go deep in Rome and therefore has a much better rationale for getting in some work this week. Only if Simon goes the distance in Nice might he compromise himself for the French Open.
The third seed is Kevin Anderson, who has been injured for much of this year and has had a hard time generating any kind of rhythm. It makes sense for him to play here.
The fourth seed is Benoit Paire, who lost early enough in Rome that he can chase rankings points here without paying much of a price.
The fifth seed is Joao Sousa. Fabio Fognini is sixth. Andreas Seppi is seventh, and Alexander Zverev is eighth.
Pullouts include Juan Monaco and Martin Klizan. Adrian Mannarino and Taylor Fritz are the replacements.
Nice Lawn Tennis Club
The facility opened in 1890 as a home of lawn tennis, but in time, it switched to clay courts, having hosted the Nice Open from 1971 through 1995 and then again since 2010 following a 14-year hiatus from 1996 through 2009. There are 18 clay courts at the club with a center court stadium.
