Gael Monfils of France with the trophy after defeating Zizou Bergs of Belgium to win the singles grand final match of the 2025 men’s ASB Classic. Photo / Photosport
Gael Monfils of France with the trophy after defeating Zizou Bergs of Belgium to win the singles grand final match of the 2025 men’s ASB Classic. Photo / Photosport
Although Auckland’s ATP and WTA events faced injury withdrawals and early exits of top seeds, the international tennis tournaments remained the talk of thetown. A record-breaking number of Kiwis flocked to the Manuka Doctor Arena on Stanley St in the opening days of the new year.
Behind the scenes of this prestigious event, much unfolds that spectators rarely see. Here are the key figures behind New Zealand’s premier tennis tournament.
2
The amount of finals unable to be completed. Finalist and crowd favourite Naomi Osaka retired from the women’s championship match after winning the first set with an unconfirmed injury.
Fast forward to the men’s competition final day when Michael Venus claimed another ASB Classic doubles title – without even taking the court. The Kiwi and his Croatian partner Nikola Mektic won by walkover on Saturday after a member of the opposing team, Rajeev Ram, pulled out due to injury just hours before the match in Auckland.
4
Three main-draw women’s players and one men’s withdrew from the tournament through injury or illness in the days leading up to the event: Brit Emma Raducanu, Romanian Simona Halep, Belgian Elise Mertens and Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard.
15
Gael Monfils opened at $15 in the TAB’s outright winner market and attracted a couple of small bets at that price. The French veteran – who eventually won the men’s tournament – was installed as a $1.70 favourite for the final against Zizou Bergs and was well supported into $1.55 before the match started.
70
Seventy drivers helped the players get around Auckland throughout the Classic, including to and from the arena. Reportedly, they completed around 2000 trips across Tāmaki Makaurau.
Emma Raducanu during a practice session. Photo / Photosport
180
From collecting balls hit into the net; feeding a player balls to serve with; running a player’s sweat towel to them; holding up umbrellas for the athletes at a change of ends; drying court lines after rain; and removing a stray bug from the court – the unpaid ball kids are the hidden heroes of the ASB Classic. In Auckland this year, there were 180 of them.
220
The number of volunteers who served in spectators' corporate boxes, handed out freebies, ushered fans to their seats and scanned tickets at the door.
400
The number of cases ordered of Powerade consumed by athletes across the fortnight.
700
The number of cases of water consumed by athletes and event staff across the fortnight.
900
Around 900 racquets were restrung throughout the event. If you divide that by the players across the men’s and women’s singles and doubles draw, that could suggest each player had their racquets re-strung roughly seven times.
4447
The shoestring-cut truffle fries, topped with parmesan cheese and a side of truffle aioli were one of the most affordable snacks on the menu at the Classic. They were a popular purchase and well worth the $15.
5000
The amount in dollars an unlucky TAB punter placed on Cameron Norrie at $1.20 in his first-round match against Facundo Diaz Acosta. The Auckland-raised player was bundled out in straight sets.
11,950
The amount of Nespressos consumed proves it’s never too hot for a caffeine hit.
15,000
About 15,000 balls were played with across the classic. In Grand Slam, ATP, and WTA tournaments, tennis balls are changed after every seven games and then every nine games after that. Forbes reported last year that at the biggest Grand Slam, the US Open in New York, the number of tennis balls used was 100,000.
17,144
Nothing beats spectator tennis on a hot summer day, sipping on a chilled Aperol Spritz. The $18 drink was bought more than 17,000 times.
The total prizemoney for the WTA women’s event is significantly lower than the men’s, despite arguably hosting more big-name players in their draw. The prizemoney was a 3% increase over 2024 and Clara Tauson collected $36,000 as champion.
766,290
The amount of the men’s prize purse was its largest ever, with a 3% increase over 2024. Monfils collected $186,000 of that for his win.
15,000,000
The cost of building a covered tennis stadium at Stanley St, with tournament organisers ambitiously hoping the 2027 event will be played under a roof inside a redeveloped, larger stadium.
Bonnie Jansen is a multimedia journalist in the NZME sports team. She’s a football commentator and co-host of the Football Feverpodcast, and was part of the Te Rito cadetship scheme before becoming a fulltime journalist.
