Veteran claims all-German showdown; defending champ Vesely ousted
There’s something about the hard courts at the ASB Classic that agrees with Philipp Kohlschreiber’s game. The 34th-ranked veteran has posted some impressive results over the years in Auckland, winning the title in 2008, and reaching the final in 2013, the semi-finals in 2010 and 2012, and the quarter-finals on four other occasions.
On Tuesday the 32-year-old improved to 25-8 at the tournament, downing countryman Benjamin Becker in a rain-delayed all-German affair 7-6(8), 6-3 to move into the second round.
The 34-year-old Becker, a qualifier ranked No. 98 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, had the better serving day when it came to aces (8/4), doubles faults (2/5) and first-serve percentage (72%/52%), but couldn’t close out the first set in the tie-break. Kohlschreiber, who had won their only previous meeting in Vienna in 2014, carried the momentum into the second set and went on to cap the match in one hour and 24 minutes.
Kohlschreiber moves on to face No. 2 seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France.
Joining the German in the second round will be No. 8-seed Roberto Bautista Agut after the Spaniard dethroned defending champion Jiri Vesely 6-3, 7-5 in 76 minutes. Last year, Vesely qualified for the main draw and beat fellow lefty Adrian Mannarino in the final. It was his first ATP World Tour title.
Leading 6-7(5), 7-6(10), 2-1, Sam Querrey advanced to the second round when Great Britain’s Aljaz Bedene retired with an injury.
Britain’s Andy Murray wants to win a record fifth Aegon Championship title at Queen’s Club this summer.
The 28-year-old world number two confirmed on Tuesday he will defend the trophy he won for a fourth time last year with victory over Kevin Anderson.
There have been eight four-time champions, including John McEnroe, Boris Becker, Lleyton Hewitt and Andy Roddick in the open era.
“If I could win it for a fifth time it would be amazing,” said Scot Murray.
“The names that have won it four times – they are all great tennis players.”
Murray, champion in 2009, 2011, 2013 and 2015, made his debut at Queen’s in 2005 and used the club’s clay courts to prepare for Great Britain’s Davis Cup final victory over Belgium in November.
| Most Queen’s titles (open era from 1969) |
|---|
| 4: John McEnroe – 1979, 1980, 1981, 1984 |
| 4: Boris Becker – 1985, 1987, 1988, 1996 |
| 4: Lleyton Hewitt – 2000, 2001, 2002, 2006 |
| 4: Andy Roddick – 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007 |
| 4: Andy Murray – 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015 |
| 3: Jimmy Connors – 1972, 1982, 1983 |
Top seed visits Sydney Tower as Apia International Sydney Gets Underway
They say there’s no better way to conquer a fear than to go right to the source. Bernard Tomic took that to heart on Tuesday. Despite a fear of heights, the Apia International Sydney’s top seed went all the way to the top of the second tallest observation tower in the Southern Hemisphere — the 1,014-foot Sydney Tower.
“This is an amazing view and it’s certainly the first time I’ve done something like this,” said Tomic. “It’s a good feeling. I never got the chance to do this. It truly is high. I’m a bit scared, but also very happy to be up here. Maybe breaking the fear up here will be a good start for the week in Sydney. I don’t do well with heights, but I’m happy I did it.”
“It’s not every day you can come up to a place like this,” he added. “There are so many things to do in Sydney. It’s a very active, energetic city, which I truly like. It’s my No. 1 place in Australia.”
While the top seed awaits his first match, action got underway at the Sydney Olympic Park Tennis Center. No. 8 seed Alexandr Dolgopolov, a two-time quarter-finalist (2011, 2014) in Sydney, raced into the second round via a 6-1, 6-4 win over Thomaz Bellucci in 66 minutes.
The 36th-ranked Ukrainian is now 2-0 against the Brazilian, having won their previous meeting at the ATP Masters 1000 Miami last March. He finished with seven aces, won 84 per cent of his first-serve points (27 of 32), and saved the only break point he faced. The 27-year-old will next face American qualifier Alexander Sarkissian.
Elsewhere, Teymuraz Gabashvili overcame six double faults to upset No. 7 seed and 2015 semi-finalist Leonardo Mayer 6-4, 6-3 in one hour and 32 minutes, inching ahead 2-1 in FedEx ATP Head2Head match-ups.
The all-French showdown between qualifier Nicolas Mahut and Adrian Mannarino saw Mahut advance with a 6-4, 7-5 decision. The 33-year-old converted five on nine break-point opportunities is the one-hour and 38-minute win.
No. 6 seed Jeremy Chardy dismissed qualifier Mikhail Kukushkin 6-2, 6-3 in just over an hour, out-acing his opponent 11-0.
Seeds Advance In Doubles
The Polish tandem of Lukasz Kubot and Marcin Matkowski were 6-3, 7-5 winners over Marc Lopez and Andreas Seppi. No. 4 seeds Rohan Bopanna and Florin Mergea battled past Denis Istomin and Henri Kontinen 6-7(2), 6-3, 10-8.
British number two Aljaz Bedene was forced to retire hurt in his opening match at the ASB Classic in Auckland.
The 26-year-old world number 49 took the first set 7-6 (7-5) against American Sam Querrey, having saved four break points.
The second set also went to a tie-break, which Querrey won 7-6 (10-8), but then Bedene withdrew when trailing 2-1 in the third.
The Briton had lost a three-hour semi-final in Chennai, India on Saturday.
American takes the field with New Zealand Diamondblacks
John Isner traded racquet for bat on Tuesday in Auckland, visiting the Howick Pakuranga Baseball Club and meeting with members of the New Zealand Diamondblacks national squad.
Isner, the No. 3 seed at the ASB Classic, joined in the Diamondblacks’ training session for the 2016 World Baseball Classic, playing catch with a former member of the San Diego Padres and taking part in batting practice.
Currently No. 11 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, Isner leads a group of seven Americans ranked inside the Top 100.