The matches in the main draw of the 32nd TERRA WORTMANN OPEN begin on Monday. Defending champion Jannik Sinner has already been at the tournament venue since Friday, while Alexander Zverev joined him from Stuttgart on Sunday evening, where he had narrowly missed out on winning the title a few hours earlier with a defeat to Taylor Fritz. Sinner and Zverev, who will not be involved in the action until Tuesday or Wednesday, are regarded as top favourites to win the tournament, and not just because of their world ranking positions.
However, the field of participants in Halle is - almost traditionally - not only outstanding in terms of depth, but also in terms of breadth. And while the top favourite triumphed last year with Sinner, the spectators in the OWL Arena have seen some surprise winners over the last few years. This year, too, there are several players in the main draw who are likely to spring a surprise.
Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev are two experienced top players and former Halle finalists. Both have not been at their best in recent months, but their undisputed quality means that they are at least among the favourites in almost every tournament.
Alexander Bublik is under particular scrutiny this year. Grass is by far the Kazakh's best surface, as he proved during his dream run in Halle 2023. Back then, he beat Jannik Sinner, Alexander Zverev and Andrey Rublev in succession on his way to winning the tournament. Bublik also comes to Westphalia with an extra dose of confidence after reaching the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam tournament for the first time in his career at the French Open.
Alongside Bublik, Ugo Humbert is another player who has already added his name to the list of winners in Halle. The Frenchman triumphed surprisingly in 2021, but has not made it past the second round here since. He has already won the hard court tournament in Marseille this season. The previous week, he reached the semi-finals in s'Hertogenbosch in the Netherlands.
The cancellation of Hubert Hurkacz due to injury, who is still suffering from back problems, means that another potential title candidate is out of the running. The Pole won the tournament in 2022 - and was only beaten in the final by Jannik Sinner in 2024.
