One of the biggest goals of the organisers of four ATP Challenger Tour-level tennis tournaments being held in Centurion from May 24 to August 8 was to create opportunities for local players to compete in top tournaments in South Africa and collect ATP points.

With this goal in mind, the tournament series has already achieved great success when South Africa’s number one Davis Cup player, Phillip Henning, won the second tournament in the series – the Rise Centurion Open – this past weekend.

According to Pretoria Rekord, Henning captured the first ATP Challenger title of his career on Sunday after overcoming Bulgaria’s Alexander Donski in a dramatic three-set final at the Rise Centurion Open.

The South African Davis Cup star took the winner’s prize money of R157 396 and added 50 points to his ATP ranking. This means that by Monday, when the new ATP rankings were released, Henning had broken through the 300 mark for the first time in his career. He is currently 249th in the ATP rankings.

Lloyd Harris, ranked 161st, is the only South African to be ranked higher than Henning

In a finals contest that showcased both resilience and determination, Henning looked in control early on as he raced to a commanding 6-2 first-set victory. However, Donski, also competing in his maiden ATP Challenger final, refused to back down and fought back strongly to take the second set 6-3, forcing a deciding set.

With the title hanging in the balance, the final set went the distance, with Henning holding his nerve in a tense match tiebreak to prevail 8-6 and seal the biggest title of his career.

The victory capped a memorable fortnight for the South African, who thrilled home fans throughout the tournament and became the latest local player to take advantage of the opportunities provided by the ATP Challenger events on South African soil.

“We’ve had a great week with great tennis. This moment is very special for me. I got to lift my first ATP title at home and to share it with South African fans make it even more special. Hopefully, there will be many more to come. The past two weeks have been awesome and the ATP tournament has been a great success,” Henning remarked after his victory.

For Donski, the defeat brought an end to a remarkable week that saw the Bulgarian qualifier reach the first ATP Challenger final of his career after coming through the qualifying draw.

During the prize-giving tournament director John-Laffnie de Jager congratulated both players.

“The past two weeks have been a significant moment for tennis in South Africa. We haven’t had tennis of this level in our country for a while. Judging by the support and the crowds, this shows there is a real interest in the sport,” De Jager said.

He added that tennis is a global sport and, through the ATP Challenger events, they hope to build tennis in South Africa. “We also want to support tennis players – the big names are made at ATP Challenger events, therefore our vision is to take tennis in SA to the next level and continue bringing tennis of this level to local fans,” he concluded.