Cam Norrie will return to Nottingham for the first time since 2018 as he looks to ignite his form in the grass court season. Norrie is a former Wimbledon semi-finalist (2022) and cinch Championships runner-up (2021) and will be the highest ranked player in the draw.

Another former champion who will come in as one of the favourites is British No.3 Dan Evans – who is the only player to have won three ATP Challenger titles on grass in the last 25 years, with two coming at Nottingham.

Then of course there’s wild card Emma Raducanu, looking to make her first appearance in Nottingham since 2022.

With plenty more set to star in the doubles and as additional wild cards and qualifiers, this could be another strong year for the Brits.  

Will it be a perfect start for Ons Jabeur’s grass court season?

World No.9 and three-time Grand Slam runner-up Ons Jabeur is one of the stand-out names ready to bring her talent to the Nottingham grass courts this summer – a surface that has brought much of her success in the past.

Jabeur has reached the final at Wimbledon twice in the last two years and made history at the 2021 Birmingham Classic in becoming the first Arab woman to win a WTA title.

Despite having just enjoyed good run at Roland Garros, on the whole it has been a mixed season for the 29-year-old Tunisian, where quarter-finals in Madrid and Abu Dhabi have been the stand-out results.

So, the grass court season couldn’t have come at a better time, and what a treat it’s going to be for the Nottingham fans to see her live in person. Jabeur’s variety and incredible shot making are what make her such an entertaining player to watch but also, effective on the court.

Having just missed out on that elusive Wimbledon title over the last two seasons, Jabeur will no doubt be more determined than ever to get off to a solid start on the grass and is one of the obvious favourites for the title.

How will top players transition from clay to grass?

For some of the players, such as Jabeur for example, the Rothesay Open Nottingham will be the first time they get to play on grass all season, and moving from the clay can be a tough transition.

On clay the ball will bounce higher and sit up more, giving you more time to reach your opponent’s shots and it’s also more consistent. Meanwhile, on grass, the ball tends to bounce much lower and shoots off the surface making it more unpredictable – so it can take a bit of getting used to.

In these initial weeks of the season that can favour players who have had that extra week to practice and play. Many of the Brits for example have already been training at the National Tennis Centre in Roehampton, while players like Evans will get an extra week of matches competing at the Lexus Surbiton Trophy.

For players coming straight from European clay courts it might take a bit of time to adjust, so keep your eye out for some big upsets in the opening rounds.

Who are the ones to watch this season?

This year’s line-up for both the WTA and ATP Challenger draws are stacked with exciting players to keep an eye out for.

Away from the Brits, it’s difficult to look past the Grand Slam champion Barbora Krejcikova alongside former world No.1 and 2021 Wimbledon runner-up Karolina Pliskova.

Two familiar names to British tennis fans after the Billie Jean King Cup Qualifiers are French starlets Clara Burel and Diane Parry, who will be ones to watch alongside four-time WTA title winner Lesia Tsurenko and former semi-finalist Viktorija Golubic.

The men’s draw is packed with rising stars who we can expect to see on the ATP Tour for many years to come, including China’s Juncheng Shang, Hong Kong’s Coleman Wong and Brazil’s Joao Fonseca.

Elsewhere, fan-favourite and former Australian Open doubles champion Thanasi Kokkinakis comes in in decent form and don’t miss last seasons quarter-finalist Dominic Stricker as well.