21.06.2021 11:32:51 | “Looking back we can see that we’ve already held our tournament for twenty eight years. It’s been a wonderful time, full of excellent tennis. Let alone the tournament’s been boasting the title “Czech Open” owing to our agreement with the President of the Association from twenty-three years ago.
Ivo Kaderka has always backed and supported our tournament and I’d like to thank him very much for doing so. He’s helped us keep an appropriate level of the tournament: the total subsidy didn’t have to be cut down, which is a little miracle in these difficult times. Therefore, the bar has remained high: we’re still the greatest Czech tennis tournament and still enjoy the prestigious status of Czech Open,“ said Miroslav Černošek, the boss of the organizing agency TK Plus. “Maintaining the high level of the tournament is not easy. The times are difficult and many are afraid that another dangerous Covid wave may come back. However, I believe that better and quieter tennis days are finally coming. I’d like to thank to all those who have contributed to the flawless course of the tournament and in particular to my wife and her team who’ve managed to overcome all challenges. We’re living in weird and unprecedented Covid times. However, this year has been a little happier than the last one and I have to say that we learned to cope with the complicated situation and thanks to the great support from the Association everybody was happy in the end. Last but not lease, we’ve received a confirmation from the Hygiene Station that everything was OK.“
MONETA Czech Open had a good ending: Zdeněk Kolář appeared in the singles semis and, along with Jebavý, in the doubles final. “It always made me happy when Czech players made it through to the final rounds: Prostějov players won here nine times, Radek Štěpánek, Jan Hájek and Jiří Veselý. It was always great when our business partners came at the end of the tournament and could see Czechs in the final.
Zdeněk Kolář surprised me. I thought Jiří Lehečka would advance after his good start against Slovak Klein. I bet on him and believe he’ll make it to the top hundred.“
This year the tournament was organized under much better circumstances. “Yes, the crowd could come and I have to thank the organizational team headed by my wife for their excellent job once again. It was not easy: the measures are still in place and they are many. We had to keep testing on a regular basis and managed to cope with everything in the necessary bubble. We can say the players have got used to it already. They are well aware that we have to comply with strict hygiene measures and that it wouldn’t be otherwise possible.“
What are the prospects of the tournament? “This is the best tournament in our country and rightly boasts the title of “Czech Open”. Over its history it has featured twenty six players who later reached the Top Ten, and two world number ones: Gustavo Kuerten of Brazil and Juan Carlos Ferrero of Spain. All in all, our tournament is second to none in terms of its history.“
Cooperation with MONETA Money Bank? “The bank helped us in extremely difficult times. They’ve been a general partner of the Czech Tennis Association and they have also brought financial security with them. Actually, except for the first three years during which the tournament was held under the auspices of Centrotex, our titular partner has always been a bank for the last twenty five years. It’s always been something noble and prestigious for the tournament.“
