Tennis News

Five Breaks & 'Feeling Great', Sinner Storms Into Second Round In Cologne

Italian #NextGenATP star Jannik Sinner wasted little time in his first-round match at the bett1HULKS Championship on Tuesday, dismissing Australian James Duckworth 6-1, 6-2 in 61 minutes.

“Not many unforced errors, I served quite well,” Sinner said on court after his win. “I’m very happy about my first match.”

One year ago this week, Sinner was still outside the Top 100 of the FedEx ATP Rankings. After reaching his first Grand Slam quarter-final at Roland Garros, the 19-year-old is up to a career-high World No. 46.

The only moment of difficulty Sinner faced came in the second set at 2-2, a service game in which he needed nearly 12 minutes to hold. After getting through that game unscathed, Sinner broke in the next game when Duckworth missed a forehand volley wide. The Italian broke the Aussie’s serve five times in the match.

“I felt great on court, moving quite well,” Sinner said. “Obviously the second set there was one game when I was serving in which he pushed a little bit more the ball, so I was a little bit rushed. But I think it was a solid performance.”

Sinner will next play aggressive Frenchman Pierre-Hugues Herbert, who rallied from a break down in the deciding set to eliminate American Tennys Sandgren 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 in two hours and 17 minutes. 

Top seed Alexander Zverev will face John Millman in the second round after the Aussie defeated Spaniard Fernando Verdasco 6-4, 6-2 in one hour and 39 minutes. Last week in Cologne, Verdasco beat former World No. 1 Andy Murray in the first round before falling against Zverev in his next match.

Spain’s Alejandro Davidovich Fokina recorded his 10th match win of the year on Tuesday with a 6-2, 6-3 victory over qualifier Damir Dzumhur of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 72 minutes. Last week, the 21-year-old reached the second ATP Tour semi-final of his career at the bett1HULKS Indoors (l. to Zverev), which was also held in Cologne. Davidovich Fokina now plays American Steve Johnson in the second round.

Lucky loser Oscar Otte advanced at his home event with a 6-3, 6-2 triumph against Austrian qualifier Dennis Novak.

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Nadal To Chase Record-Tying 36th Masters 1000 Title In Paris

Rafael Nadal confirmed on social media Tuesday that he will chase a record-tying 36th ATP Masters 1000 title at the Rolex Paris Masters.

It’s indoor season time… this picture was earlier today practicing at the @rnadalacademy … And yes… getting ready for #ParisBercy ??? pic.twitter.com/SajEB4JMEW

— Rafa Nadal (@RafaelNadal) October 20, 2020

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic earned a record 36th trophy at the elite level at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome. But with a victory in Paris, Nadal will be able to tie that mark.

Nadal will compete at the indoor hard-court tournament, where he owns a 19-5 record, for the eighth time. The World No. 2 has made at least the quarter-finals in each of his seven previous appearances. In his 2007 debut, Nadal made the final (l. to Nalbandian).

The legendary lefty just won his 13th Roland Garros title, tying Roger Federer’s mark for most Grand Slam triumphs with 20. Nadal is 22-4 this season with two titles. The Spaniard did not lose a set en route to earning the crown in Acapulco or at Roland Garros.

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Zverev Brothers Roll At Home In Cologne

Alexander Zverev and Mischa Zverev lost in the first round in Cologne last week. Their second try at the same venue was the charm on Tuesday at the bett1HULKS Championship.

The Zverev brothers defeated Dominic Inglot and Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi 6-4, 6-2 in 71 minutes to reach the second round. The Germans saved all three break points they faced and won 43 per cent of their return points to triumph. The unseeded duo advances to face back-to-back Roland Garros champions Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies or Spaniards Alejandro Davidovich Fokina and Fernando Verdasco.

Australian Open finalists Max Purcell and Luke Saville continued their push for a spot at the Nitto ATP Finals with a 7-6(3), 6-7(1), 10-7 victory against Felix Auger-Aliassime and Robert Lindstedt.

Four spots remain in the doubles field at The O2. Purcell and Saville began the week in ninth place in the FedEx ATP Battle For London.

FedEx ATP Battle For London: Doubles Standings

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Dan Evans ends five-match losing run with three-set win in Antwerp

British number one Dan Evans ends his five-match losing run by beating qualifier Salvatore Caruso in the European Open first round.

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Evans, Norrie Battle Into Antwerp Second Round; De Minaur Plays Gasquet Later

Britons Daniel Evans and Cameron Norrie both completed hard-fought wins on Tuesday afternoon at the European Open in Antwerp.

Evans hit nine aces to work his way past Italian qualifier Salvatore Caruso 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 in one hour and 55 minutes, including a solid serving performance in the decider for his 14th match win of the season. He will next challenge American Frances Tiafoe in the second round.

Norrie recovered from 0-3 down in the second set of a 6-3, 7-6(4) win over Finnish qualifier Emil Ruusuvuori in one hour and 37 minutes. The World No. 70 now challenges fifth-seeded Canadian Milos Raonic or Aljaz Bedene of Slovenia.

Elsewhere, Spain’s Pablo Andujar powered his way past lucky loser Federico Coria of Argentina 6-2, 6-3 in 82 minutes to set up a second-round meeting against fourth-seeded Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov. Coria replaced Kei Nishikori, who withdrew on-site due to a right shoulder injury.

Eighth-seeded Australian Alex de Minaur will take on Richard Gasquet of France during the evening session.

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Felix: Final Losses 'Tough To Accept', But 'I'll Try Again'

Felix Auger-Aliassime lost Sunday’s bett1HULKS Indoors final in straight sets, slipping to 0-6 in ATP Tour finals. But his opponent, World No. 7 Alexander Zverev, had no doubt that it’s only a matter of time before the Canadian breaks through.

“Felix, you’re an unbelievable player. I know it doesn’t mean much right now, but I’m sure you are not only going to win one title, you’re going to win multiple, multiple titles in your career, bigger titles than this,” Zverev said during the trophy ceremony. “We know each other incredibly well… you’re going to be lifting a winner’s trophy very soon.”

The 20-year-old was left searching for answers after his disappointing performance against the top seed. After an impressive win against second seed Roberto Bautista Agut in the semi-finals, Auger-Aliassime wasn’t sure why he was unable to find his best tennis against Zverev.

“Tough to say. [For it to happen] again in a final, it’s tough. I don’t play good [in finals]. I’m not able to play my game,” Auger-Aliassime said. “It’s just tough to accept, so I don’t have much to say outside of I’m disappointed with my level today overall and I’ll try again.”

The Canadian admitted nerves might have played a role.

“For sure,” Auger-Aliassime said. “I’ll try to work and find away around it.”

One reason to remain optimistic is that at only 20, Auger-Aliassime has already played in six tour-level finals. When the Canadian made the Marseille championship match in February, he became the youngest player to reach five tour-level finals since an 18-year-old Rafael Nadal at 2005 Miami.

“That number is good,” Auger-Aliassime said. “But one day I’ll need to find a way to win one of them.”

Auger-Aliassime is the fifth seed at this week’s bett1HULKS Championship. He will play Egor Gerasimov in the second round.

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Peers/Venus Continue London Push In Antwerp

John Peers and Michael Venus are in a heated battle for one of four coveted spots remaining in the Nitto ATP Finals doubles field. They are showing good form, defeating Luke Bambridge and Jackson Withrow 6-4, 7-5 on Monday to reach the second round of the European Open.

The Aussie and Kiwi have won two titles this year, lifting the trophy in Dubai and Hamburg. They began the week in sixth place in the FedEx ATP Battle For London, ahead of seventh-placed Jurgen Melzer and Edouard Roger-Vasselin by 275 points.

FedEx ATP Battle For London: Doubles Standings

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Peers and Venus, the second seeds in Antwerp, broke serve four times and won 82 per cent of their first-serve points to triumph after one hour and 12 minutes.

In Monday’s other doubles match, Belgian wild cards Michael Geerts and Yannick Mertens ousted the American-Italian wild card team of Zane Khan and Luca Nardi 6-4, 7-6(3) in one hour and 27 minutes.

Did You Know?
The four teams that have qualified for the Nitto ATP Finals so far are Rajeev Ram/Joe Salisbury, Mate Pavic/Bruno Soares, Kevin Krawietz/Andreas Mies and Marcel Granollers/Horacio Zeballos.

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