Erste Bank Open: Herwig Straka - "An investment for the future"
In a final press conference, tournament director Herwig Straka takes stock of the Erste Bank Open. The Austrian talks about the challenges during the organization, the departure of Novak Djokovic and the next stops of the ATP tour.
by Michael Rothschädl
last edit: Nov 01, 2020, 12:54 pm
By Michael Rothschädl from the Wiener Stadthalle
One last hurray from public life should be the Erste Bank Open in the Wiener Stadthalle for the next few weeks. 1000 fans were able to watch the final between Andrey Rublev and Lorenzo Sonego live on site before Austria said goodbye to another lockdown on Tuesday. "The world looked at Vienna this week. There was another tournament with spectators here, something that has not been seen for a long time," said Herwig Straka in a final press conference.
"Normally we would present new record numbers now, but today we are happy and humble that we managed to hold the Erste Bank Open," said the tournament director. Straka emphasized the great challenges that would have come with the event. Tough negotiations with sponsors and partners and many ups and downs would have had to be dealt with in advance.
Erste Bank also sponsor in 2021
Thomas Schaufler from the main tournament sponsor, Erste Bank, also sees the situation as paradoxical: "We had the best field of players, but the fewest spectators. That is of course sad. Nevertheless, we can look back on a very good cooperation and will be the main sponsor again in 2021 be there ", explained Schaufler. Herwig Straka shares the same message: "We are proud that we have mastered all the challenges together and that we have put together a great event."
The tournament director makes no secret of the fact that, despite the great field of players and the great media response, it was an event that will be in the red: "This is an investment in the future. If we were to have the same situation next year, then we could we don't do it, we wouldn't be able to take it financially, "said the Austrian.
Djokovic-from "expendable"
However, Straka had to deny whether there had been subsidies and financial support from the state: "Even if I tried very hard, we fell through the grate with all funding sources. We will now draw a line and then see which We can take stock, "said Dominic Thiem's manager. "We hope that we can hold a normal tournament next year," emphasized Schaufler.
The spearhead of a strong field of participants in Vienna this year was the world's number one, Novak Djokovic. However, Straka does not fully agree with the way the Serb left the country: "There is no place to be resentful, we still have a good relationship. The way he played and the subsequent press conference were unnecessary. That was not worthy of a number one. "
"Australian Open will take place"
In addition to his existence as tournament director at the Erste Bank Open, Straka is also represented on the board of the ATP. The Austrian gave information about the upcoming tournaments on the sidelines of the press conference: "Australia is highly complicated because of the entry requirements. Everything will probably take place in Melbourne, or in the state of Victoria. The ATP Cup is 50:50, the Australian Open will be certainly take place ", said the Austrian.
It will be more difficult in February when the tournaments in South America are on the program: "The situation is not so rosy there, but we are already working on replacement scenarios," said Straka. During the ATP Masters 1000 event in Paris-Bercy, the fate of the two Masters tournaments in Indian Wells and Miami will also be clarified. "We hope that this can be played without a spectator if necessary. And then of course we hope that the situation will get better at some point."