Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares are into the doubles semi-finals of the ATP World Tour Finals and on course to end 2016 as the world number one pairing.
Briton Murray and Brazil’s Soares beat Croatia’s Ivan Dodig and Marcelo Melo of Brazil 6-3 3-6 10-6 to top the Edberg/Jarryd Group.
The win takes Murray and Soares above Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut in the rankings.
The French pair could regain top spot by winning their final group match.
However, Friday’s match is Herbert and Mahut’s last chance to accrue another 200 points because they lost their opening two matches and cannot qualify for the semi-finals.
Murray and Soares will play Feliciano Lopez and Marc Lopez or Raven Klaasen and Rajeev Ram in the last four on Saturday.
“All the guys can beat each other here, I didn’t really know what to expect,” said Murray.
“I knew if we could perform well we’d be a tough team to beat.
“We played great the first three matches and we’re really excited to be in the semi-finals for the first time.”
Soares can also end the year top of the individual doubles rankings if Mahut fails to win with Herbert on Friday.
“He’s been close the last few weeks and we keep blowing it,” said Murray, who was number one earlier in the year.
“Bruno’s obviously been doing a good job for me this year and it would be great for us if he can do it.”
Andy Murray hopes to recover from his epic win over Kei Nishikori in time to face Stan Wawrinka at the ATP World Tour Finals on Friday.
The Briton, 29, needed a tournament-record three hours and 20 minutes to see off Nishikori on Wednesday.
He returns to London’s O2 Arena 48 hours later knowing he must take a set off Wawrinka to ensure a semi-final place.
Murray will play the Swiss third seed at 14:00 GMT on Friday.
The match will be live on BBC Two, online and Radio 5 live sports extra.
Read more:Wimbledon to remain on BBC until 2024
Nishikori takes on Marin Cilic in the evening session at 20:00, with the Japanese player also able to claim one of the two semi-final places from the John McEnroe Group.
Murray needs to qualify for the last four to maintain his hopes of ending 2016 as the world number one, ahead of Novak Djokovic.
The only way Murray can be eliminated after winning his opening two matches is with a straight-set defeat by Wawrinka, followed by a Nishikori win over Cilic.
To win the group and avoid playing Djokovic in the semi-finals, Murray must either win, or lose in three sets and hope Nishikori beats Cilic in three sets.
“Obviously it’s important to win matches to give yourself the best chance to go through, and 200 points for each match here is quite a lot as well,” said Murray.
Asked if he was optimistic he could recover from Wednesday’s lengthy match sufficiently to challenge Wawrinka, the Scot told BBC Sport: “I haven’t thought about that.
“I’m just getting up each day and trying to give the best of what I have on that day.
“I’ll just try to use a good rest day to recover. Hopefully I won’t be too stiff and sore come Friday, but it’s not ideal to play matches of that length at this stage of the season.”
Wawrinka played poorly in a swift defeat by Nishikori on Monday but improved dramatically to beat Cilic and resurrect his hopes on Wednesday.
The Swiss, 31, lost to Murray in their only meeting this year at the French Open but won last year’s group-stage contest at the O2 Arena.
And the US Open champion has no qualms about potentially knocking out the home favourite.
“I don’t care at all,” said Wawrinka. “All I know is if I want to have a chance to qualify, I need to win. That’s all I know. That’s all I’m trying to do.
“I’m going to try to play my best tennis, to beat the world number one.”
John McEnroe Group qualification scenarios
If Murray beats Wawrinka and Nishikori beats Cilic, Murray wins the group and Nishikori is second
If Murray beats Wawrinka and Cilic beats Nishikori, Murray wins the group and Nishikori is second
If Wawrinka beats Murray and Cilic beats Nishikori, Wawrinka wins the group and Murray is second
If Wawrinka beats Murray in 2 sets and Nishikori beats Cilic in 2 sets, Nishikori wins the group and Wawrinka is second
If Wawrinka beats Murray in 2 sets and Nishikori beats Cilic in 3 sets, Wawrinka wins the group and Nishikori is second
If Wawrinka beats Murray in 3 sets and Nishikori beats Cilic in 2 sets, Nishikori wins the group and Murray is second
If Wawrinka beats Murray in 3 sets and Nishikori beats Cilic in 3 sets, Murray wins the group and Nishikori is second
Murray in numbers
124 – aces fired down by Murray during his unbeaten sequence.
2.8m – prize money, in British pounds, won by Murray since he last lost.
5 – sets he has dropped in the last 21 matches.
63 – when Murray plays Stan Wawrinka on Friday, 63 days will have passed since he last lost a match – to Juan Martin del Potro on Davis Cup duty.
46 – Murray is still 25 wins short of the open era record of 46 consecutive wins, achieved in 1977 by Argentine Guillermo Vilas.
2 – Murray has had two walkovers during his run of victories, when opponents pulled out before scheduled matches. Walkovers are not counted in winning streaks.
22 – Murray is one win from matching his career-best 22-match undefeated run from earlier this season, during which he won the Queen’s Club, Wimbledon and Olympic titles.
8 – The Scot has now won a tour-leading eight titles in 2016.
The BBC has extended its contract to broadcast Wimbledon for an additional four years, taking its partnership with the All England Club through to 2024.
The agreement means the Grand Slam remains free to air across BBC television, online and radio.
“Wimbledon is the pinnacle of the sport,” said BBC director general Tony Hall.
Earlier this year, a peak audience of 13.3 million watched Andy Murray win his second Wimbledon title on BBC One.
Next year, the longest partnership in sports broadcasting history celebrates 80 years of television and 90 years of radio coverage.
Wimbledon will continue to be broadcast across BBC One, BBC Two, BBC online and on BBC Radio 5 Live and 5 live sports extra.
“We greatly value the BBC’s commitment to delivering large national audiences for the championships across a multitude of high quality platforms,” said Philip Brook, chairman of the All England Club.
Hall added: “Wimbledon on the BBC will continue to unite the nation through must-see sporting moments, captivating audiences of all ages.”
Novak Djokovic kept up the pressure in the race for the year-end number one ranking with victory over Belgian David Goffin at the ATP World Tour Finals.
Djokovic had already qualified for the semi-finals, and completed the group stage with a 6-1 6-2 win.
Milos Raonic joined the Serb in the last four with a 7-6 (7-5) 6-3 win over Austria’s Dominic Thiem.
Murray won his first two group matches and plays Stan Wawrinka on Friday at 14:00 GMT.
Key info: Standings, results, schedule and BBC coverage
BBC extends Wimbledon broadcast deal
Five-time champion Djokovic took his record at the O2 Arena to 21 wins in 22 matches with a straightforward dismissal of Goffin.
The Belgian, 25, was in London as the alternate, and making his tournament debut after Gael Monfils withdrew with a rib injury.
With £144,000 and 200 ranking points on offer for every group match victory, there was plenty to play for, but Goffin was outclassed by the champion.
Djokovic broke serve at the second attempt and the most significant drama came when he argued with umpire Fergus Murphy and tournament supervisor Tom Barnes over a time violation.
“One time!” the Serb said repeatedly, unhappy that he had not been given a warning he was getting close to breaking the 25-second rule.
It did nothing to interrupt the momentum on court as Djokovic eased to victory in just 69 minutes.
“Undoubtedly, I felt the most comfortable today from all three matches I’ve played this week,” said Djokovic.
“I felt like I increased the level and the quality of tennis, so that’s a good sign.”
Djokovic now has a rest day before he plays Murray, Wawrinka or Kei Nishikori in Saturday’s semi-final.
“No stress at all,” he added. “Why stress? We come here to play, to enjoy.
“This is one of the biggest tournaments in the world. I’m just having fun on the court.”
Spaniard soaking in debut at Barclays ATP World Tour Finals
Throughout my 16-year career, I’ve played in hundreds of tennis stadiums. I’ve slid on the grass on Centre Court at the All-England Club. I’ve gazed at the Mediterranean Sea from the red clay of the Monte-Carlo Country Club. In Indian Wells, I’ve lost track of time staring at the Palm Desert mountains while in town for the BNP Paribas Open.
But nowhere, including the many indoor tournaments we play annually, prepared me for playing at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals. To put it simply, everything is different at The O2.
Let’s start with the lights. For about 10 months of the year, we play our matches outside. Sometimes the sun blocks your vision of your ball toss. Other days, clouds shield the sky and you play under overcast skies.
But at The O2, we have plenty of light, and it’s all on you. Maybe it’s this way because of the many concerts the venue hosts, but, during play, the arena can feel like a theatre. The lights – the very bright lights – are on us, the performers, and the bulbs on the crowd stay dimmed.
This is a good thing, too. It’s so much easier to see the ball inside The O2 than anywhere else on the ATP World Tour. The theatre analogy works to describe the tennis crowd in London as well. Most crowds are respectful, maybe cheering at climax moments – tie-breaks or whenever Andy Murray steps within 50 metres – but the majority of the time, London tennis fans watch attentively and cheer when appropriate.
The lights also shine on you when you walk onto the court during one of our sport’s most special on-court introductions. The videos on the jumbo-tron before the match. The public announcer shouting your name before you walk through the tunnel. It’s a show that happens to take place before a tennis match, and I’m enjoying every moment of it. Even the most basic part of our game – the sound of the ball hitting the racquet – hits your ear differently because of the acoustics of The O2.
I’m 35 years old – 200 in tennis years – and when you’ve played professional tennis for as many years as I have, you start to think you’re used to everything. You think you’ve seen all the big crowds, played under the brightest lights and in our sport’s biggest stadiums.
But then you make your debut appearance at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, and you get to experience something entirely new.
Raonic, Thiem Battle For Semi-Final Berth In London
Nov172016
Djokovic, Goffin open up singles action on Thursday
The winner of Thursday’s match at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals between Austria’s Dominic Thiem and Canada’s Milos Raonic will qualify for Saturday’s semi-finals as the runner-up in Group Ivan Lendl.
Thiem is the youngest man to win a singles match at The O2 since 2009. Any young Austrian tennis player will find himself toiling in the long alpine shadow of Thomas Muster, a former World No. 1. And yet it’s perfectly possible that Thiem, a debutant at the season finale, could today out-perform Muster by qualifying for the semi-finals. For all his other achievements, ‘The Iron Man of Tennis’ never did that.
“A star is born – big hug,” Jose Mourinho wrote on the back of his VIP pass to the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, which he gave to Thiem backstage on Sunday. Manchester United’s manager, who likes his tennis, appreciated the quality of Thiem’s play on that opening afternoon, with the 23-year-old snaffling a tie-break 12-10 against Novak Djokovic before losing in three sets. And there was another significant moment for Thiem on Tuesday when he registered his first victory at the tournament with a three-set win over Gael Monfils, so becoming the youngest man to win a singles match at the event since 2009.
Thiem has already played a lot of tennis at The O2 this week – six sets so far – just as he has played a lot of tennis this season. In a busy year, Thiem has won four titles, which is more than anyone else apart from Andy Murray (8) and Djokovic (7). Raonic, who pushed Djokovic to two tie-breaks on Tuesday evening, has a record in London to maintain. After finishing as the runner-up at The Queen’s Club this year, and also playing for the title at Wimbledon – on both occasions he was rebuffed by Murray – can he go on to reach a third final of the season in London?
Defending champion Novak Djokovic, who has won all four of his previous matches against David Goffin, meets the Belgian alternate in Group Ivan Lendl this afternoon.
Djokovic has Inspector Gadget-like reach and legs that are seemingly made of rubber. Any time he performs the splits on a hard court – as he just might today – there should really be a public health warning: “Don’t try this at home.”
Watching Djokovic, you’ll be reminded of how far tennis has travelled since its beginnings in 19th-century tea parties on vicars’ lawns. Or, indeed, how far it has travelled since the 1980s, the decade being celebrated at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals this week.
Here’s something else to admire – Djokovic’s run at this season finale, with the Serbian attempting to win the tournament for a fifth successive year and for a record-equalling sixth time overall, which would bring him parity with Roger Federer. But Djokovic hasn’t had it easy so far at The O2 this November – he lost a 12-10 tie-break to Dominic Thiem on Sunday before winning in three sets, and he fended off Milos Raonic on Tuesday in a couple of tie-breaks. Even so, Djokovic maintained his unbeaten record against both those opponents.
Djokovic was supposed to be playing Gael Monfils, a Frenchman he has conquered in all 13 meetings, in this afternoon’s singles match. But with Monfils, who had lost his opening two matches, withdrawing from the tournament last night because of a worsening rib injury, Djokovic’s opposition will instead be Goffin. And even with that change, Djokovic goes into another Group Ivan Lendl match looking to preserve his ‘perfect’ record against that day’s opponent as he leads the alternate 4-0 in their FedEx ATP Head2Head. The last of Djokovic’s victories over Goffin, the World No. 11, came this year at the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event in Miami.
DAY 5 PREVIEW
While four-time reigning Barclays ATP World Tour Finals champion Novak Djokovic has already locked up a spot in the semi-finals by winning Group Ivan Lendl, the two youngest players in this year’s field, Milos Raonic (25) and Dominic Thiem (23), battle it out Thursday with the winner going on to the final four.
In the opening singles match, Djokovic brings a 4-0 career FedEx ATP Head 2 Head record against alternate David Goffin, who replaced Gael Monfils. The Frenchman withdrew on Wednesday with a rib injury. The 25-year-old Belgian has put together his best season and he will finish a year-end high No. 11 in the Emirates ATP Rankings. His best result was a runner-up in Tokyo last month (l. to Kyrgios). He also advanced to four semi-finals, including back-to-back ATP Masters 1000 events in Indian Wells and Miami. He is trying to become the first alternate to win a match since Janko Tipsarevic (d. Djokovic) in 2011. Djokovic won the last meeting 76 64 on Apr. 1 in the semi-finals at Miami. Djokovic, who advanced to the season finale semi-finals for the fifth straight year (and seventh overall) with his 76 76 win over Raonic on Tuesday, has earned 400 Emirates ATP Ranking points so far. He will have 11,380 points on the season if he beats Goffin. Andy Murray has 11,310 points after his 3h, 20m victory over Kei Nishikori on Wednesday. Djokovic has won 20 of his past 21 matches at The O2 since 2012 with his only loss coming to Federer last year in the second round robin match. Djokovic is attempting to finish group play undefeated (3-0) for the fourth time in the past five years.
In the evening session, Raonic and Thiem square off for the second time. In their previous meeting in the quarter-finals at ATP Masters 1000 Cincinnati on Aug. 19, Raonic won 63 64. Both players are 1-1 this week in Group Ivan Lendl, defeating Monfils and losing to Djokovic. The winner of this match will mark a historic first singles semi-final appearance from Canada or Austria in the ATP Finals (since 1970). Raonic is trying to reach his ninth semi-final of the season while Thiem is attempting to advance to his 11th semi-final. If he beats Raonic, Thiem would be the youngest semi-finalist at the season finale since Juan Martin del Potro (21) reached the final in 2009 (l. to Davydenko). Raonic and Nishikori are chasing current No. 3 Wawrinka to finish No. 3 in the Emirates ATP Rankings for the first time. Wawrinka has 5,315 points and leads Raonic (5,250) and Nishikori (4,905).
Group Ivan Lendl Semi-finals Qualification Scenarios (Thursday)
Djokovic has already won group
Raonic-Thiem winner will qualify in second place
Group Edberg/Jarryd play concludes with all four teams in semi-final contention (see scenarios on next page). No. 2 seeds Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares are one win away from overtaking current No. 1 Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut, who hold a 175-point lead in the Emirates ATP Doubles Team Rankings. If Murray/Soares defeat No. 6 Ivan Dodig and Marcelo Melo, they will reach the semi-finals and surpass Herbert/Mahut by 25 points. The Frenchmen are 0-2 in round robin play and they could earn 200 points with a win on Friday. In the first doubles match, four-time ATP Finals champions Bob and Mike Bryan take a 2-0 head-to-head record against No. 8 Treat Huey and Max Mirnyi. The Bryans are trying to reach the semi-finals for the fourth straight year and 11th time in 14 appearances. Mahut will clinch year-end No. 1 in the individual Emirates ATP Doubles Rankings if he wins on Friday or Murray/Soares lose a match. No Frenchman has ever finished a season as World No. 1 in singles or doubles.
Group Edberg/Jarryd Semi-finals Qualification Scenarios (Thursday)
Regardless of score, if J. MURRAY / B. SOARES defeat I. DODIG / M. MELO and B. BRYAN / M. BRYAN defeat T. HUEY / M. MIRNYI, then J. MURRAY / B. SOARES win the group and B. BRYAN / M. BRYAN qualify 2nd.
Regardless of score, if I. DODIG / M. MELO defeat J. MURRAY / B. SOARES and T. HUEY / M. MIRNYI defeat B. BRYAN / M. BRYAN, then I. DODIG / M. MELO win the group and J. MURRAY / B. SOARES qualify 2nd.
If J. MURRAY / B. SOARES defeat I. DODIG / M. MELO in 2 sets and T. HUEY / M. MIRNYI defeat B. BRYAN / M. BRYAN in 2 sets, then J. MURRAY / B. SOARES win the group and order of remaining teams is determined by % of games won.
4) If J. MURRAY / B. SOARES defeat I. DODIG / M. MELO in 2 sets and T. HUEY / M. MIRNYI defeat B. BRYAN / M. BRYAN in 3 sets, then J. MURRAY / B. SOARES win the group and B. BRYAN / M. BRYAN qualify 2nd.
5) If J. MURRAY / B. SOARES defeat I. DODIG / M. MELO in 3 sets and T. HUEY / M. MIRNYI defeat B. BRYAN / M. BRYAN in 2 sets, then J. MURRAY / B. SOARES win the group and I. DODIG / M. MELO qualify 2nd.
If J. MURRAY / B. SOARES defeat I. DODIG / M. MELO in 3 sets and T. HUEY / M. MIRNYI defeat B. BRYAN / M. BRYAN in 3 sets, then J. MURRAY / B. SOARES win the group and B. BRYAN / M. BRYAN qualify 2nd.
If I. DODIG / M. MELO defeat J. MURRAY / B. SOARES in 2 sets and B. BRYAN / M. BRYAN defeat T. HUEY / M. MIRNYI in 2 sets, then T. HUEY / M. MIRNYI are eliminated and order of remaining teams is determined by % of games won.
If DODIG / M. MELO defeat J. MURRAY / B. SOARES in 2 sets and B. BRYAN / M. BRYAN defeat T. HUEY / M. MIRNYI in 3 sets, then I. DODIG / M. MELO win the group and J. MURRAY / B. SOARES qualify 2nd.
If I. DODIG / M. MELO defeat J. MURRAY / B. SOARES in 3 sets and B. BRYAN / M. BRYAN defeat T. HUEY / M. MIRNYI in 2 sets, then J. MURRAY / B. SOARES win the group and B. BRYAN / M. BRYAN qualify 2nd.
If I. DODIG / M. MELO defeat J. MURRAY / B. SOARES in 3 sets and B. BRYAN / M. BRYAN defeat T. HUEY / M. MIRNYI in 3 sets, then J. MURRAY / B. SOARES win the group and B. BRYAN / M. BRYAN qualify 2nd.
We use technology such as cookies on our website, to provide functions and analysis of our visitor data. Click Accept to confirm that you agree to its use.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
While Thursday afternoon sees a dead rubber clash between Novak Djokovic and alternate David Goffin, the evening sees…
As is often the case with round robin events, there is the danger that you will have meaningless matches and that will be the…