Napoli Cup has brought back the green hard courts. These courts were popular in the 1990s but they were discontinued because it was hard to see the ball because of the lack of contrast between the color of the ball and the color of the court.

Tournaments then moved to blue courts which made it easier to see. Grand slams such as the US Open and the Australian Open also moved to the blue courts. Over the years, blue hard courts became ubiquitous.

The tournament in Napoli is typically a Challenger event but was upgraded to ATP 250 level event this year because of the cancellation of tournaments in China due to COVID-19.

China found good success on the WTA tour but success on the ATP tour was elusive. But Zhang Zhizhen is out to change that. The 26-year became the first player from mainland China to enter the top 100 in world rankings after he beat Sebastian Baez to reach the quarterfinals at Napoli.

Zhang Zhizhen has been setting Chinese records for some time. In 2021, he became the first Chinese man in the Open era to play in the main draw at Wimbledon. He has won three singles and two doubles titles at the Challenger Circuit. In 2022, he qualified for the US Open main draw but lost in the first round.