As the 2023 French Open reaches its final hours, the grass-court season is just around the corner, with the BOSS Open being among the tournaments that will kick it off.
Matteo Berrettini won last year's edition of the tournament by beating Andy Murray in the final and will be expected to have a good run this time as well. However, the Italian is bound to have a tough title defense as he has not played since his injury at the Monte-Carlo Masters in April, not to forget that a number of players competing are capable of challenging for the title.
These include Stefanos Tsitsipas, Taylor Fritz, Hubert Hurkacz, Frances Tiafoe, and Nick Kyrgios.
On that note, here is everything you need to know about the tournament.
What is the BOSS Open?
The BOSS Open is an ATP 250 grass-court event that takes place in the month of June. The inaugural edition of the tournament in the Open Era took place in 1968, with India's Ramanathan Krishnan beating Germany's Bodo Nitsche in the final after the latter retired mid-match.
Rafael Nadal has won the grass-court competition thrice, which is more than anyone in the Open Era. Other past champions include Roger Federer, Bjorn Borg, Ivan Lendl, and Andre Agassi.
Venue
The Tennis Club Weissenhof in Stuttgart will be the venue for the 2023 BOSS Open.
Players
Defending champion Matteo Berrettini is seeded seventh at this year's event and will be eager to have another good run after missing the last couple of months due to injury.
Stefanos Tsitsipas is the top seed and a heavy favorite to win in Stuttgart. The Greek was beaten comprehensively by Carlos Alcaraz in the French Open quarterfinals and will look to bounce back with a strong start to the grass season.
Taylor Fritz is seeded second and is also capable of challenging for the title, given some of the performances he has produced so far this season. Frances Tiafoe and Hubert Hurkacz are seeded third and fourth, respectively, and both are good enough to be considered contenders for the BOSS Open.
Nick Kyrgios will play his first match of the 2023 season here and it will be interesting to see how he fares following a long injury layoff. Tommy Paul and Lorenzo Musetti are also among the seeded players at the BOSS Open in Stuttgart.
Schedule
The main draw of the tournament will start on June 12, when the opening round will take place. The quarterfinals will be held on June 16 while the semifinals are set for June 17. The final is scheduled to take place on June 18.
Prize Money
The total prize pool for the BOSS Open is €718,410 and the winner of the men's singles event will take home a cheque of €109,270 and 250 ranking points. Here is the prize money breakdown for the ATP 250 tournament:
Where to Watch the BOSS Open
Viewers in the US, UK, Australia, and Canada can watch the tournament live on the following channels and sites:
USA: All matches will be broadcast on Tennis Channel.
UK: Fans in the UK can watch the proceedings live on Amazon Prime Video.
Australia: All matches will be telecast on beIN Sports.
Canada: Viewers in Canada can watch all the matches on TSN.