ATP Next Gen star Daniil Medvedev marked his Montpellier debut at the Open Sud de France with a 6-2, 7-6(3) triumph over Tobias Kamke on Tuesday.

The 20-year-old Russian, who reached a maiden ATP World Tour final at the Aircel Chennai Open last month, prevailed in straight sets to earn a contest with eighth seed Fernando Verdasco. The Spaniard put in an emphatic performance to move past Gregoire Barrere 6-2, 6-1.

Great Britain’s Aljaz Bedene sent ATP Next Gen player Borna Coric out in a 7-5, 4-6, 6-1 battle, establishing a second-round match-up with another rising star Alexander Zverev. Benoit Paire, 2013 finalist, managed to stifle the threat of 20-year-old Karen Khachanov in a 7-6(4), 6-4 battle. Paire has built on his promising start to 2017 after the Frenchman reached the semi-finals in Chennai.

Rajeev Ram ensured it was a day for the underdogs in the second round of the Ecuador Open on Tuesday. The unseeded American fought back from a set and a break down to stun the No. 5 seed Alexandr Dolgopolov 3-6, 7-6(4), 6-3.

Dologopolov, a former World No. 13 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, served for the match after breaking for 6-5 in the second set before Ram swung momentum in his favour to secure his first victory over the Ukrainian.

“I think I was playing quite solid,” Dolgopolov said. “I was serving for the match and got a bit unlucky in that game.

“He played really well and hit a few winners and then it was a tiebreak and he served well. I lost the tiebreak and the third set did not go my way, he was hitting a lot of winners from everywhere.

“He broke straight away to start the third set … it was not easy. I tried to come back after that but it was too late.”

Spanish qualifier Roberto Carballes Baena easily accounted for Brazil’s Rogerio Dutra Silva 6-3, 6-1, while Matthew Ebden, on a protected ranking, fought back to deny Argentina’s Agustin Velotti 2-6, 6-4, 6-3. In an all-Argentine battle, Nicolas Kicker defeated Guido Andreozzi 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.

Renzo Olivo was the only seed to advance in Quito. He survived a fight from Ecuadorian wild card Emilio Gomez 5-7, 6-2, 7-6(5).

Gilles Muller safely navigated through his opening match at the Garanti Koza Sofia Open on Tuesday to book a second-round encounter with Mikhail Youzhny.

The fifth-seeded Muller progressed to the 2016 semi-finals in Bulgaria and ignited his title charge with a 6-3, 6-2 victory over qualifier Mathias Bourgue. Youzhny, ranked No. 89, prevented Marko Tepavac from a debut ATP World Tour win, navigating past the Serbian 7-6(2), 6-4.

Qualifier Cedrik-Marcel Stebe took advantage of his main-draw opportunity by defeating Teymuraz Gabashvili 2-6, 6-0, 6-1. The World No. 406’s reward is a contest with reigning champion Roberto Bautista Agut. Eighth seed Martin Klizan overcame Russia’s Andrey Kuznetsov 6-0, 7-6(4), whilst top Dutchman Robin Haase was too strong for home wild card Dimitar Kuzmanov in straight sets 6-4, 6-3.

Stefan Edberg was a masterful server. He was an even better returner.

The 1991 season is a distant 26 years ago, but the numbers the cool, calm and calculated Swede put up that year on the returning side of the game still greatly impress to this day.

An Infosys ATP Beyond The Numbers analysis of Edberg’s 1991 season highlights a player who conquered the year-end No. 1 ranking primarily on the return side of the equation. The 1991 season was the first year complete statistics were recorded in tennis, providing an interesting snapshot of what was going on in our game more than 25 years ago. It is subsequently the initial year recorded in the year-end No. 1s ATP Stats LEADERBOARDS, powered by the Infosys Information Platform.

We remember Edberg as an accomplished serve-volley player who also attacked the net behind his ultra-flat forehand and heavy slice backhand. His pinpoint volleys were majestic, and his stoic, imperturbable demeanor was a delight to watch.

When you compare the analytics of Edberg’s 1991 season against the other 25 years up to Andy Murray’s stellar 2016 season where he finished year-end No. 1 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, you get a deeper understanding of what helped Edberg finish 1991 as the best player in the world.

He always relied on his great serve, but his return was invaluable, particularly when returning first serves. The Swede’s 1991 season has stood the test of time in this specific area, ranked second overall in 26 seasons in points won returning first serves at 35.5 per cent. He ever so slightly trails Novak Djokovic’s 2011 season, where the super Serbian won 35.7 per cent of his first-serve return points.

Stefan Edberg: 1991 Season Analysis

Edberg’s ATP Stats LEADERBOARDS Serve Rating, powered by the Infosys Information Platform, has his 1991 season ranked a lowly 24th out of 26, but his return rating sits much higher at No. 10. The Swede also finished seventh overall in break points converted, at 45 per cent, which was higher than banner years of three current champions in our game.

Break Points Converted Comparison

1991 Stefan Edberg 45%
2008 Rafael Nadal 44.5%
2015 Novak Djokovic 44.2%
2005 Roger Federer 44.2%

Edberg sits 35th in career service games won at 83 per cent, but he’s ranked a much higher 22nd in return games won at 30 per cent. He was really a great returner masquerading as a serve-and-volleyer.

The Swede won only one Grand Slam event in 1991, defeating six Americans in seven matches to capture the US Open. Significantly, he defeated No. 22 Michael Chang in the Round of 16, No. 3 Ivan Lendl in the semi-finals and No. 5 Jim Courier in the final – all in straight sets to win the $400,000 champion’s paycheck.

Edberg could serve and volley and crash the net with the best our sport has ever seen, but once you dig deeper into the numbers of his great game, we get a much greater appreciation of his returning skills.

The courts at the Open Sud de France are set for the ATP World Tour 250 tournament this week, but that doesn’t mean they can’t also be used for a little handball!

Top two seeds Marin Cilic and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga were put to the test when French handball stars Vincent Gerard and Michael Guigou joined them on Tuesday in Montpellier. Gerard and Guigou, who play for the French national team, were fresh off a World Championship win and primed to challenge the ATP stars.

Super moment avec nos champions du monde à l'@OpenSuddeFrance ??✨ pic.twitter.com/FVVt8FDue4

— Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (@tsonga7) February 7, 2017

Top seed Cilic will open his campaign in the French city against Dustin Brown in the second round, while second seed Tsonga awaits the winner of the match between Calvin Hemery and Pierre-Hugues Herbert.

Dominic Thiem and David Goffin are set to bid for the Garanti Koza Sofia Open crown this week in Bulgaria, but the duo took to a different venue Tuesday morning in a historic part of the city. The top two seeds visited Ancient Serdica archaeological complex for a brief hit in the capital’s Ancient Roman complex.

“It’s a special occasion, a special area,” said second seed Goffin. “I didn’t know it was such a special place here in Sofia. I saw this place and I will try to visit more if I have time this week because I heard it’s a very nice city.

“I’m really impressed by the arena, it’s big and brand new,” said the Belgian, who will face Radu Albot in his opening match in the second round on Wednesday. “It’s not going to be easy. It’s never easy to play the first match in the tournament, but I’m feeling ready.”

Largely below street level, the historic complex covers an area of about 9,000 square metres and includes eight streets and an early Christian basilica. The two stars hit in an amphitheatre under a glass dome at the square between the Council of the Ministers and the Presidency.

“It’s an impressive arena… I hope that it’s packed when we play,” Thiem said of the tournament’s venue. “Also the city is nice so I’m happy to play my first round soon.”

The Austrian will face the winner of the match between Nikoloz Basilashvili and Adrian Mannarino in the second round.