By Randy Walker
@TennisPublisher
“The Pathway to Greatness” is how I responded, with a mix of seriousness and tongue in cheek, when my pal Harry Cicma reminded us on Twitter and Instagram that Aslan Karatsev, perhaps the best story out of the 2021 Australian Open in men’s singles, was a “product” of his impromptu tennis tour during the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020.
But upon deeper inspection, and after Karatsev’s upset wins over Diego Schwartzman and Felix Auger-Aliassime, my comment has shown to be more serious than tongue in cheek.
For period in the spring of 2020, the only pro sports or tennis events held in the USA and one of the few around the world was a series of pro exhibition matches organized by Cicma, a former ATP-ranked doubles player now media personality and TV production company owner. Driven by his love of tennis, his appreciation for the struggles of lower-ranked players during the pandemic and with a sponsor in tow, Cicma created the weekly tournament series that was held first in private backyard tennis courts and later at the Saddlebrook Resort in Tampa, Florida. “The Harry Cicma Tour” which is how it was affectionately known as. Word quickly spread among lower ranked tennis players that there was an opportunity to safely play competitive tennis during the COVID-19 lockdown and at least earn some Spartan Futures-level prize money. Cicma and I talked frequently during the planning of his event as I politicked to try to get one of the events to be played in Vero Beach, Florida, one of the most active and tennis-appreciative markets in the United States.
As word of the tour opportunity spread, Cicma received numerous calls a day from players of all levels, including Top 50 player Frances Tiafoe, and player agents to seek spots in the event. Then came a call from Russia. It was Karatsev, who wanted to get into the event even though he was in Russia. Cicma helped with some paperwork to get him into the United States and for a stretch of four weeks in July and August, he played 23 matches on the “Harry Cicma Tour” to stay in match shape and earn at least a few dollars.
Prior to playing the “Cicma Tour,” Karatsev, 27, was ranked in the mid-200s in the ATP rankings, wallowing in Challengers and Futures events, and at one point losing 11 straight matches during a stretch to end the 2019 season. However, immediately after his “Cicma Tour” experience, Karatsev had one of the best weeks of his career in his first official event back at the Prague Challenger in August, where he beat four established Top 100 players (Robin Haase, Jiri Vessely, Ernests Gulbis, Henri Laaksonen) then No. 71 Pierre Hughes-Herbet before losing to three-time major champion Stan Wawrinka in the final. He then won the second edition of the Prague Challenger the following week and then the week after that, won the Ostrava Challenger to move his ranking to No. 116. He made a run to the final of qualifying for Roland Garros, where he lost to a red-hot American Sebi Korda, who would go on to reach the fourth round. After his “Cicma Tour,” Karatsev won 17 of his next 18 matches followed by his second and third career ATP singles match wins in Sofa, Bulgaria and St. Petersburg, Russia to close out 2020.
“Aslan was a major warrior on our tour,” said Cicma. “He wanted to compete in multiple matches per day and he thrived in the Florida summer heat at the Saddlebrook Resort. He literally was always keen to play two matches per day against top 200 caliber ATP players. I’m sure that helped him in subsequent weeks and this year at the Australian Open.”
During his four weeks on the Cicma Tour at Saddlebrook, Karatsev played 23 matches, with a 17-6 record that included a win over Egor Gerasimov, who he ironically beat in the second round at the Australian Open this year. At one point, he won 11 matches in a row. His UTR verified match record can be found on the MyUTR website here: https://app.myutr.com/profiles/51314?t=1
“The focus of our tour was to build character and stamina for the middle ranked pros, who were looking to stay sharp for the prime time ATP Tour events and Aslan is an example of that,” said Cicma.
Karatsev advanced into his first ever main draw at a major at this year’s Australian Open by winning three matches in the qualifying event in Doha, including a first-round win over the dangerous and hot young American Brandon Nakashima. En route to the quarterfinals, he beat No. 8 seed Schwartzman 6-3, 6-3, 6-3 and No. 20 seed Auger-Aliassime from two sets down 3-6, 1-6, 6-3, 6-3, 6-4. Ranked No. 114 at the start of the Australian Open, he will now at least be in the top 70 in the world.
