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Vienna 2026 - ATP 500 Preview

(26 october - 1 november) Vienna is among the fastest indoor events on tour, only a bit slower than Basel. As in Basel, the bounce is high, so the slice is less effective.

nishi
nishi
– 3 min read
Vienna 2026 - ATP 500 Preview

The ATP 500 of Vienna (Erste Bank Open) is played on indoor hard courts.

Here are the statistics of the last 5 years: 

  • 73.9% of points won on the first serve
  • 83.3% of service games held
  • 0.60 aces/game
  • 0.19 tie-breaks/set

 These numbers suggest very high-speed conditions. In the ranking from the last three years, it is ranked 10th and in the top 5 in all the indoor hard court tournaments.

Vienna is situated at 220 meters above sea level. It's not a high altitude, but every little bit helps and contributes to making the court conditions faster.

In the 12 qualifying matches played so far in 2026, we have had 71.3% point won on 1st serve. 

Previous winners

2025: Sinner d. Zverev

2024: Draper d. Khachanov

2023: Sinner d. Medvedev

2022: Medvedev d. Shapovalov

2021: Zverev d. Tiafoe

Sinner, Federer, Murray, Ljubicic, J. Melzer, Haas, Ivanisevic, Gottfries and Stan Smith have won the tournament twice.

Weather

This week, Vienna is forecast to see highs of 10–14°C (50–57°F) and lows of 0–9°C (32–48°F). Expect a mix of sunshine and cloud, mostly dry conditions with a chance of light rain, and relative humidity around 50–70%.

Weather not that important on indoor courts.

Player Statements

Sinner, 2025: "Conditions aren't the same everywhere and change from year to year: temperature, humidity, wind, many factors come into play. It's not just a question of balls; the issue is broader, more important, it's not just a question of balls or schedules, but I prefer not to go into detail. In some tournaments the balls get faster, in others they don't. Every week is different. Many things could be changed, but it's not just a question of balls. For example, in Cincinnati they're smaller and faster, but in the end, they are what they are."

Berrettini, 2024: "The conditions are really good. I really like the conditions. It’s kind of bouncy and feels like there’s a little bit of altitude.”

Dimitrov, 2024: "The conditions from last week to this week are so different, so I just had to find a way."

Cobolli, 2023: "Indoor is now one of my favorite conditions; on a court like this that isn’t very fast and where the balls bounce up I feel very comfortable. Maybe when the court is faster I still struggle but in these conditions I adapt very well. This is a court very similar to the one I played in Davis Cup so we based our game along the same lines that we we did in Bologna."

Medvedev, 2023: "When you play on this kind of a faster surface, with two good servers like me and Stefanos, to break you need this one game where you play good.On slower hard courts, you can build this pressure, getting to 30-30 and then to deuce, but here on these faster courts, you need to have that one game where you play well and get to the break point and then play well on the break points, which I did well today."

Summary

Despite Cobolli's impressions, the data show that the courts in Vienna are very fast.

Vienna is, with Dallas, Basel and Paris the fastest indoor tournaments on the circuit. The 220 m. altitude also helps a little bit. A bit slower than Basel, though.

In contrast to other hard indoor courts, the bounce of the ball here is quite high, so the slice is not as effective here. Same as Basel.

Draws

Here’s the link to the tournament draws, which you can check for updates at any time:

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