Kyrgios Continues To Thrive In Miami

Mar262018

Two-time defending semi-finalist to play Zverev or Ferrer

It’s safe to say that Nick Kyrgios has enjoyed playing in Miami. It’s where he advanced to his first two ATP World Tour Masters 1000 semi-finals the past two seasons — in his first two appearances at the tournament, no less.

And if the Australian’s start this year has been a sign of the future, Kyrgios could be in for another big run at Crandon Park. The 22-year-old cruised past recent Sao Paulo champion and the No. 15 seed, Fabio Fognini, 6-3, 6-3 on Monday in 66 minutes to move into the Round of 16 at the Miami Open presented by Itau.

After emerging from a battle between two semi-finalists from last year’s tournament in South Florida, Kyrgios is now 10-2 in Miami, as he continues pursuing a maiden Masters 1000 title. This is his third Top 20 win of the season, and he advances to play fourth seed Alexander Zverev or No. 28 David Ferrer, who are competing in the evening session.

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It is Kyrgios’ third tournament of the season, and his first since the Australian Open. The World No. 20 won his fourth ATP World Tour title to begin the campaign at the Brisbane International presented by Suncorp, his first trophy on home soil.

Monday’s first-time FedEx ATP Head2Head matchup between the two Top 20 players set up to be a blockbuster, but it was Kyrgios who controlled play and seized his opportunities. While the No. 17 seed did not allow the Italian a break point in the match, the right-hander broke at three of five opportunities, even though Fognini lost just three points on his first serve (18/21). Kyrgios has yet to face break point in the tournament.

Kyrgios Serving In Miami 2018

Opponent	First-Serve Points Won	Second-Serve Points Won	Break Points Faced
Dusan Lajovic	85 per cent (22/25)	83 per cent (10/12)	0
No. 15 Fabio Fognini	76 per cent (22/29)	62 per cent (16/26)	0

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Alfie Hewett: 'Best tennis' helps Briton win Super Series title

Posted: Mar 26, 2018

Great Britain’s Alfie Hewett says he fought off tiredness to play some of his “best tennis” and win a first Super Series wheelchair title.

The 20-year-old world number one beat Japan’s Shingo Kunieda 6-3 7-6 (8-6) in the Cajun Classic final on Sunday.

Hewett, who won his first Grand Slam singles title at the French Open last year, did not drop a set in the event.

“Not dropping a set is a very big thing for me, so I can go home very, very happy,” he said.

The Cajun Classic tournament, which is held in Baton Rouge in the United States, has been upgraded to Super Series status this year, becoming one of the six most prestigious wheelchair tennis events outside the four Grand Slams.

Hewett strengthened his position as world number one with victory over two-time Paralympic champion and reigning Australian Open champion Kunieda.

“He’s beaten me the last couple of times so I was really up for today, even though I felt tired,” said Hewett. “I really wanted to get on court and prove a point.

“He’s had a really good start to the year and played some his best tennis for a long, long while.

“I knew it was going to be tough and I came out and played some of my best tennis.”

British number one Lucy Shuker partnered Diede de Groot of the Netherlands to win the women’s doubles title.

Shuker and De Groot, seeded second, fought back from 5-2 down in the deciding set to win 2-6 6-3 7-5 against Dutch top seeds Marjolein Buis and Aniek van Koot.

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ATP Stars Support Stoneman Douglas HS Players

Posted: Mar 26, 2018

ATP Stars Support Stoneman Douglas HS Players

Mar262018

Kyrgios invites students to his Sunday practice

The Miami Open presented by Itau and ATP World Tour stars welcomed members of the boys’ and girls’ tennis teams from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School for Saturday’s evening session, which was called ‘Marjory Stoneman Douglas Night’ to honour the survivors of a shooting on 14 February in which 17 students and teachers from the school lost their lives.

Kevin Anderson, Tournament Director James Blake, Bob Bryan, Mike Bryan, Michael Chang, Hyeon Chung, Steve Johnson, Karen Khachanov, Nick Kyrgios, Michael Mmoh, Sam Querrey, Diego Schwartzman, Denis Shapovalov and Alexander Zverev joined members of the WTA Tour with the students on court before play began in a sign of support, and spent time off the court getting to know the teenagers as well. John Isner also met with the teams. All the players wore #MSDSTRONG shirts, which were sold to raise funds for the Marjory Stoneman Douglas Victims’ Fund, and student Angelique Meneses sang the National Anthem.

Khachanov Blake Zverev

After the 22-year-old Kyrgios defeated Dusan Lajovic to advance to the third round, the Australian visited the students again and invited the teams to join his practice on Sunday. Those players got an added bonus when Boston Celtics star Gordan Hayward, who played tennis competitively as a junior, joined in.

“I don’t think I’ve done anything that special, just to bring them out here to a training session, to give them the opportunity to meet professionals and make their day, that’s easy for me,” Kyrgios said according to the Miami Herald. “It made the training session more fun for me and, obviously, it’s a tough time for them, so if they can get out here and get their minds on something else, it’s pretty important.”

It is not the first time Kyrgios has done his part to offer support to others. The World No. 20 created his NK Foundation to support underprivileged youth, and the foundation received an ATP ACES For Charity grant earlier this year.

Tough loss Sunday for @NickKyrgios, but he still won at the #AusOpen, spending time with kids who are battling disease after practice. @foundation_nk received an ATP Aces For Charity grant this year. Learn more about Kyrgios’ efforts:
?: Geoff Rankin
➡️ https://t.co/Q0gMwfGeXg pic.twitter.com/jmVjiMAHb8

— ATP World Tour (@ATPWorldTour) January 22, 2018