Frenchman Lucas Pouille announced Tuesday on social media that he will undergo right elbow surgery later this month in Paris.

“It’s never an easy decision to take,” Pouille wrote. “After new medical exams, it appeared it was the best solution in order to finally be able to play pain-free. I still hope to play before the end of the season. See you all soon.”

It’s never an easy decision to take, but I will get surgery on my right elbow this month in Paris. After new medical exams, it appeared it was the best solution in order to finally be able to play pain-free. I still hope to play before the end of the season. See you all son 🙂

— Lucas Pouille (@la_pouille) July 14, 2020

Pouille climbed to a career-high No. 10 in the FedEx ATP Rankings in March 2018, but he has since fallen as low as World No. 62. The 26-year-old’s lone tournament of the 2020 season came at the Indian Wells ATP Challenger Tour event, where he lost his opening match against Noah Rubin.

Pouille, whose final tournament of 2019 came at the Rolex Shanghai Masters due to his right elbow injury, is a five-time ATP Tour titlist.

It takes years of hard work and dedication for players to earn their spot in the International Tennis Hall Of Fame and Museum. Luckily, for fans, the organisation has provided a shortcut.

In the week when the organisation was due to host its Class of 2020 Induction ceremony, alongside the Hall of Fame Open, the International Tennis Hall Of Fame has launched the ‘Your Name in the Hall of Fame’ campaign to bring fans closer to the legends of the game. By pledging a donation of US $25 or more, you will be featured in a special mosaic-style museum exhibit that will commemorate the support of fans around the globe.

All donors to the campaign will be able to submit a photo and/or name listing that will be added to a mosaic. The mosaic will then reside in the Museum at the International Tennis Hall Of Fame and on the organisation’s website.

On 18 July, which would have been the Class of 2020 induction day, Tennis Channel will be broadcasting TC Live: Hall of Fame Edition at 8 p.m. (EST) with an encore presentation at 11 p.m. The special program will showcase the prestige of the annual induction ceremonies and highlight the museum’s efforts to preserve tennis history.

For more information on the campaign, click here.

Tiger Woods is undoubtedly one of the greatest golfers in history. How has he been spending his quarantine during the COVID-19 pandemic?

Playing tennis, of course!

“There are a lot of things I hadn’t done in a long time and one, sport-wise and physically, is we were playing quite a bit of tennis,” Woods said during a virtual press conference on Tuesday. “That was very different and something I hadn’t done in a very long period of time because I hadn’t been able to do it physically.”

Woods underwent back surgery in December 2016 that kept him off the course for more than a year. But now that he is healthy, he has enjoyed playing tennis.

“The kids enjoyed it,” Woods said. “We were able to do that in the backyard.”

The golf superstar has long been a tennis fan, remaining friends with some of the sport’s biggest stars, including Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. Woods watched Nadal compete at last year’s US Open, where the Spaniard won his 19th Grand Slam trophy.

Asked by ESPN personality Tom Rinaldi if he and Woods had ever teed it up together, Nadal quipped, “Honestly, it’s much better if Tiger doesn’t see my swing. Maybe he would lose a little bit of rhythm after that.”

Nadal, who plays golf right-handed, has a handicap in the low single digits. It’s safe to say he enjoyed playing in front of his friend.

“It’s a huge honour to play in front of all of [New York fans] but to play in front of Tiger is a very special thing,” Nadal said. “I’ve always said that I don’t have idols, but if I did I would have to say that one idol is him.”

Roger Federer, Tiger Wosod” />

Woods also has a long history with Federer. The golfer watched from Federer’s box as the Swiss won the 2006 US Open. Just months later, ahead of the Tennis Masters Cup, Federer watched Woods compete in a tournament in Shanghai.

Both men have weathered late-career injuries to enjoy success. Woods complimented Federer after the Swiss won the 2017 Australian Open.

“For him to come back, after having to take that much time off, and for him to get the timing, that’s the hardest part. Those courts were playing quick. You saw his first game, he framed about three or four of them. But once he found the groove, once he found the rhythm, Roger came back,” Woods said. “He rehabbed properly and you can tell how fast he’s moving. He’s shortened up points, changed his strategy around a little bit. Didn’t hang around the baseline as long. I mean, as you get older, you change your game and you do things slightly differently, and he did that.”

With 46 tour-level trophies, including three Grand Slam crowns, Andy Murray has enjoyed consistent success throughout his career on the ATP Tour. But in 2016, the Brit raised his game during an impressive six-month period to become World No. 1 in the FedEx ATP Rankings for the first time.

The Dunblane native had trailed Novak Djokovic by 9,025 FedEx ATP Rankings points after losing to the Serb in the Mutua Madrid Open final in May, but that event proved to be the start of a remarkable run for Murray. From Madrid until the end of the season, Murray claimed 65 wins from 70 matches and reached 12 finals from 13 events.

By the time Murray faced Djokovic in a winner-takes-all championship match at the Nitto ATP Finals in November, he had overtaken the 12-time Grand Slam champion to become World No. 1 and stood just one win away from becoming only the 17th man to finish an ATP Tour season as year-end World No. 1.

With both men bidding to claim victory and end the year at the top of the FedEx ATP Rankings, it was Murray who rose to the occasion. The two-time Wimbledon champion, cheered on by a passionate home crowd, put on a nearly flawless performance to notch his 24th straight victory, 6-3, 6-4, capturing the trophy and finishing above his rival as the year-end World No. 1 in the FedEx ATP Rankings.

“It’s been a tough rivalry,” said Murray. “I’ve lost many of them but obviously I’m happy I’ve got the win today. To finish the year No. 1 is very special. It’s something I never expected.”

Andy Murray beat Novak Djokovic to win the Nitto ATP Finals and finish as year-end World No. 1 in the FedEx ATP Rankings in 2016.” />

How did Murray manage to overturn a 9,025 point deficit in just six months? He put together the best run of his career.

Following his loss to Djokovic in Madrid, Murray began his journey towards the top of the FedEx ATP Rankings with a confidence-boosting victory against the World No. 1 in the Internazionali BNL d’Italia final. The World No. 2 followed his win in Rome with his first run to the championship match at Roland Garros, only to be denied for the second straight major championship by Djokovic in the final. Djokovic’s maiden Roland Garros crown earned him a spot in an exclusive club, as he joined Don Budge (1938) and Rod Laver (1962, ’69) as the only men to hold all four Grand Slam titles at the same time.

“I have played some of my best tennis on clay over the past few weeks,” said Murray. “Hopefully that translates well onto the grass, which is a surface that comes way, way more naturally to me.”

Andy Murray falls to Novak Djokovic in the pair’s seventh Grand Slam final meeting.” />

Boosted by his performances during the European clay season, Murray made a major move in the World No. 1 battle on grass. The Brit claimed 12 straight victories on the surface to become the first five-time singles champion at the Fever-Tree Championships and a two-time Wimbledon titlist. With back-to-back final wins against Milos Raonic, Murray reduced Djokovic’s lead at the top of the FedEx ATP Rankings to 4,845 points.

“This is the most important tournament for me every year,” said Murray at Wimbledon. “I’ve had some great moments here and also some tough losses. The wins feel extra special because of the tough losses. I’m proud to have my hands on the trophy again.”

In his next event, Murray continued to make history by becoming the first man to win multiple Olympic singles gold medals. The three-time Grand Slam champion, who also won gold at the 2012 London Olympics, beat Kei Nishikori and Juan Martin del Potro in back-to-back matches to stand on top of the podium in Rio de Janeiro.

A runner-up finish at the Western & Southern Open took Murray’s final streak to seven events, before a quarter-final loss to eventual finalist Kevin Anderson at the US Open. Following his loss in New York, Murray returned to action in China to begin a memorable run of five straight titles that would earn him the year-end World No. 1 spot.

The 29-year-old won 10 straight matches across events in Beijing and Shanghai, before returning to Europe to lift the Vienna trophy and increase the pressure on Djokovic. Just under six months on from his Madrid final loss to the 12-time Grand Slam champion, Murray claimed another milestone victory against Raonic in the Rolex Paris Masters semi-finals to become the first British World No. 1 in FedEx ATP Rankings history.

“To get to No. 1 isn’t about today, but it’s about 12 months of tournaments to get to this stage,” said Murray. “The last few months have been the best of my career and I am very proud to have reached No. 1. It has been a goal of mine for the past few years.”

After producing a 19th consecutive tour-level victory against John Isner in the Paris final, Murray completed his remarkable journey at The O2 in London. The first half of 2016 may have belonged to his biggest rival, but Murray put together one of the best runs in recent ATP Tour history to not only catch Djokovic, but surpass him in front of home fans at the Nitto ATP Finals.

Rafael Nadal won a record 81 consecutive tour-level matches on clay from 2005 to 2007. During that winning streak, the Spaniard made his mark in Båstad.

The lefty began the 2005 season with one ATP Tour title. Not only did he claim a career-high 11 trophies that year, he won his first Grand Slam at Roland Garros and his first four ATP Masters 1000 crowns. But Nadal entered that July’s Nordea Open seeking a turnaround.

After triumphing at Roland Garros, Nadal only won one of three matches during his grass-court season. In his third appearance in Båstad, the 19-year-old wanted to get back on track. He didn’t just get back on track; Nadal gained plenty of momentum, winning the title with the loss of just one set, against Tomas Berdych in the final.

“Berdych was tough and aggressive,” Nadal said. “In the first set he played so good, I couldn’t do much.”

A teenage Nadal showed similar qualities to the legendary champion he has become. The Spaniard dominated his first four matches, each against a clay-court standout. Nadal didn’t lose more than four games in a set, rolling past Juan Monaco, Alberto Martin, Juan Carlos Ferrero and Tommy Robredo.

“I’m very happy to have reached another final and the first here in Båstad,” Nadal said.

Berdych, the big-hitting Czech, was No. 42 in the FedEx ATP Rankings. But he had already proven his abilities against the top players in the sport, stunning World No. 1 Roger Federer at the 2004 Athens Olympics. Berdych came out firing, cracking a forehand winner in his first return game to break World No. 3 Nadal. But like he has since done so many times in his career, Nadal found another gear to triumph 2-6, 6-2, 6-4.

“I played a little bit more aggressively in the second set and I played with deeper shots,” Nadal said. “I got to 4-0 [in the second set] very fast and that was important for the confidence.”

After the match, a reporter asked Nadal if he had his sights set on the top of the FedEx ATP Rankings, to which the Spaniard replied, “I’m not ready for it. I need to improve in my game. I will need to improve my serve and find regularity in it and I have to become more aggressive on my forehand.”

Just more than three years later, Nadal reached World No. 1, a spot he has held for 209 weeks throughout his career.

There are many ways to describe doubles: fast-paced, thrilling and nail-biting among them. Doubles players show a wide variety of jaw-dropping shots and skills that make for compelling competition.

Over the course of the next nine weeks, some of the best doubles players in the world will analyse key elements of the discipline: the serve, aggressive return, consistent return, x-factors, overhead, feel, forehand volley, backhand volley, half volley and toughest opponents to give fans an unprecedented look inside doubles. This is the ATP Tour’s ‘Ultimate Doubles Player’ series.

But first, what makes a great doubles player?

“When things go fast, I’m better,” said former World No. 3 Robert Lindstedt. “If you’re not comfortable in a fast-paced environment on court, go home.”

Sometimes the reason a player struggles on the singles court could lend itself to success on the doubles court. Lindstedt says his reactions have always been better than his decision-making. He was capable of hitting any shot he wanted, but having time on the singles court led to poor shot selection. He believes he thrives without time to think.

“You have to have good reactions. The quick decision has to come naturally for you, otherwise you’re going to be left standing on your back foot not knowing where to go or what to do,” Lindstedt said. “It’s about getting your nervous system to fire up and see what’s happening quicker, and that’s basically practising at a higher pace than you’re used to for a longer period of time. Slowly you raise your level. Some are born with it easier than others.

Lindstedt turned pro in 1998 and at 43 years old, the Swede remains inside the Top 100 of the FedEx ATP Doubles Rankings. During those 22 years, he has seen how doubles has changed.

“When I came on Tour, fitness wasn’t a major part of doubles,” Lindstedt said. “But I feel like that has really, really developed into [a big part]. I learned to be a hard worker, so I’m really happy to see that.”

Another veteran who has long enjoyed success is Bruno Soares, a 32-time tour-level titlist. The Brazilian believes that while strokes and fitness are very important, there are intangibles that are vital to a doubles player’s success.

“We all know the great players have [weapons]. I think in doubles what makes a great player is his ability to adapt,” Soares said. “We’re constantly adapting to different conditions — fast court, slow court, fast ball, slow ball, altitude, sea level, clay, grass, hard, different partners, different weeks… I think a great player is someone who of course has amazing strokes, but a great ability to adapt to all the different situations that we are exposed to throughout the year.”

Bruno Soares defeat Lukasz Kubot and Marcelo Melo to win the Rolex Shanghai Maters on Sunday.” />

Over the course of the next nine weeks, a variety of active doubles stars from different generations and tennis backgrounds will analyse the shots and skills that define doubles. They will not only share who they feel is the best at a particular shot or skill, but explain why it is important.

The participating players are: Juan Sebastian Cabal, Robert Farah, Raven Klaasen, Robert Lindstedt, Marcelo Melo, Jurgen Melzer, Jamie Murray, Filip Polasek, Rajeev Ram, Joe Salisbury, Ken Skupski, Neal Skupski and Bruno Soares.