Tennis News

ATP Cup Preview: Can Greece & Australia Halt Spain In Group B?

Second-seeded Spain headlines Group B at the 2021 ATP Cup, which begins on 2 February in Melbourne. The second edition of the event features 12 countries competing across four groups, with the top teams from each group advancing to the knockout semi-finals.

Here is everything you need to know about Group B: who is playing, when they’ll hit the court and how to follow all the action.

Group B: Spain, Greece, Australia
Last year’s finalist Spain will have to go through Greece and Australia if they want another shot at the ATP Cup trophy. World No. 2 Rafael Nadal is set to lead his nation for the second year in a row, bolstered by his combined 9-1 ATP Head2Head record against Stefanos Tsitsipas and Alex de Minaur, the other No. 1 singles players in the group. Spain will be a strong contender for every point as undefeated Roberto Bautista Agut reprises the No. 2 singles player role, and seasoned stars Pablo Carreno Busta and Marcel Granollers wait in the wings in doubles.

Former Nitto ATP Finals champion Tsitsipas shoulders his country’s hopes as they look to avenge their 2020 showing: Tsitsipas won one match out of three as Greece bowed out with a 0-3 record, which included a defeat at the hands of Australia. The 22-year-old will contest a rematch of the 2018 Next Gen ATP Finals championship match against De Minaur on Day 2 as he seeks to extend his perfect 3-0 ATP Head2Head record.

De Minaur’s Australia made it to the ATP Cup semi-finals last year, and the hosts are hoping to continue springing surprises against Spain and Greece. The 21-year-old Aussie put in some stellar performances, even taking a set off Nadal in a thrilling semi-final encounter. He’s set to get another shot at the 20-time Grand Slam champion as Australia opens against Spain on Day 1.

Meet The Group B Players

Three Group B Matches To Watch

Rafael Nadal (ESP) vs Stefanos Tsitsipas (GRE)
The last day of round-robin action will feature one of the most anticipated clashes of the tournament as 35-time ATP Masters 1000 champion Nadal faces 2019 Nitto ATP Finals winner Tsitsipas. The World No. 2 will come in with a commanding 6-1 lead in their ATP Head2Head, but should be ready for a stern test against a player who has pushed him to a deciding set in three of their most recent four matches.

Rafael Nadal (ESP) vs Alex de Minaur (AUS)
Nadal managed to keep an inspired de Minaur at bay at last year’s ATP Cup, and the Aussie will get the chance to exact revenge as Australia once again takes on Spain. It was the first time in three attempts that De Minaur had claimed a set against Nadal, but it was not enough to put away the Spaniard who won seven of the final eight games of the match.

Roberto Bautista Agut (ESP) vs John Millman (AUS)
Spain’s Roberto Bautista Agut will be looking to extend his undefeated streak at the ATP Cup as he gets his campaign started against John Millman. The familiar foes will meet for the sixth time, and although Millman is still looking for his first victory, he has pushed the Spaniard to a deciding set on three occasions. In their previous match on Australian soil, Bautista Agut narrowly escaped in a dramatic five-set marathon against Millman in the second round of the 2019 Australian Open.

Where To Watch ATP Cup
TV Schedule

Group B Schedule 
View full group stage schedule

Tuesday, 2 February: Spain vs Australia

Rod Laver Arena – starts 5:30pm
Roberto Bautista Agut vs John Millman
Not before 7:00pm

Rafael Nadal vs Alex de Minaur
Followed by doubles match – Players TBC

Wednesday, 3 February: Greece vs Australia

Rod Laver Arena – starts 5:30pm
Michail Pervolarakis vs John Millman
Not before 7:00pm
Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Alex de Minaur
Followed by doubles match – Players TBC

Thursday, 4 February: Spain vs Greece

Rod Laver Arena – starts 5:30pm
Roberto Bautista Agut vs Michail Pervolarakis
Not before 7:00pm
Rafael Nadal vs Stefanos Tsitsipas
Followed by doubles match – Players TBC

*Match schedule is subject to change in line with ATP rules and regulations

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Scouting Report: 15 Things To Watch In Melbourne

After a two-week break, the ATP Tour returns to action with a packed schedule in Melbourne. The leading stars of the ATP Tour will compete across three tournaments in Victoria, with the ATP Cup and two ATP 250 events on the calendar.

At the ATP Cup, 15 of the Top 17 players in the FedEx ATP Rankings will compete for their nation. Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Dominic Thiem and Daniil Medvedev lead their countries, with each of the four group champions advancing to the semi-finals.

At the Great Ocean Road Open, Top 20 stars David Goffin and Karen Khachanov will each attempt to lift their fifth ATP Tour crowns. Delray Beach champion Hubert Hurkacz and #NextGenATP Italian Jannik Sinner will also feature in the draw.

Three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka headlines the Murray River Open. The 2014 Australian Open titlist is joined at the ATP 250 by Grigor Dimitrov, #NextGenATP Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime and home favourite Nick Kyrgios.

FIVE THINGS TO WATCH AT THE ATP CUP
1) Defending Champion: Serbia will seek its second ATP Cup trophy this year. The inaugural champion won all six ties it contested at the 2020 edition of the event, with wins against Canada, Russia and Spain in the knockout stages.

Across singles and doubles, Djokovic owns an 8-0 record at the innovative team event. Dusan Lajovic, Serbia’s No. 2 singles player, finished the tournament with a 4-2 record. Both men will return for this year’s competition, as Serbia headlines Group A alongside Canada and Germany.

2) Spain Returns: After coming within one victory of the trophy last year, Spain returns in 2021 with another strong team roster. The 2020 runner-up nation compiled a 5-1 tie record last year, which included wins against Belgium and Australia in the knockout rounds.

Nadal will lead his nation for the second time, after winning six of his eight matches at the tournament last year. The 20-time Grand Slam champion will be joined by Roberto Bautista Agut — who did not drop a set at last year’s tournament — Pablo Carreno Busta and Marcel Granollers. Spain meets Greece and Australia in Group B.

3) Doubles Deciders: At the ATP Cup, it pays to have doubles experience in your team. At last year’s event, 14 ties were won in deciding doubles matches, including Serbia’s 2-1 final victory against Spain.

This year’s tournament will feature some of the leading doubles stars on the ATP Tour. Germany can rely on two-time Roland Garros champions Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies, while France will utilise the experience of Nicolas Mahut and Edouard Roger-Vasselin. Last year’s Nitto ATP Finals qualifiers Granollers (Spain), Horacio Zeballos (Argentina) and John Peers (Australia) will also feature in Melbourne.

4) Thiem, Medvedev Lead Their Nations: Thiem and Medvedev, who both contested the 2020 Nitto ATP Finals championship match, will aim to carry their momentum into 2021 with success at the ATP Cup. World No. 3 Thiem leads Austria in Group C, where he will face Matteo Berrettini (Italy) and Gael Monfils (France) in singles action.

Medvedev returns as the No. 1 singles star for 2020 semi-finalist Russia in Group D. The World No. 4 will meet Diego Schwartzman (Argentina) and Kei Nishikori (Japan) in his singles matches.

5) No. 2 Stars: The importance of a strong second singles player cannot be underestimated at the ATP Cup. Each tie at the event begins with No. 2 singles action, giving No. 2 singles players the unique opportunity to set the tone of each tie and place their nation one win from victory.

Lajovic and Bautista Agut, who played in the No. 2 position for finalists Serbia and Spain last year, finished the tournament with a combined 10-2 singles record. One of those losses was due to their meeting in the championship match, which Bautista Agut won in straight sets. World No. 8 Andrey Rublev and Top 20 stars Bautista Agut, Milos Raonic and Fabio Fognini will all compete in the No. 2 singles position this year.

FIVE THINGS TO WATCH AT THE GREAT OCEAN ROAD OPEN
1) Headline Acts: Throughout the 2020 ATP Tour season, Goffin reached one semi-final. The Belgian equalled that mark in the first week of his 2021 campaign with a run to the Antalya Open semi-finals (l. to De Minaur). The World No. 14 will attempt to reach his first championship match since the 2019 Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati. Second seed Khachanov, who claimed four consecutive wins to open his 2020 season, will be aiming to repeat that feat in 2021 and advance to his first ATP Tour final since his title run at the 2018 Rolex Paris Masters.

2) Polish Power: While many players will be making their first appearances of the season in Melbourne, Hurkacz has already lifted a title this year. The 23-year-old did not drop a set in Delray Beach en route to his second ATP Tour crown. Hurkacz clinched the trophy with a 6-3, 6-3 win against #NextGenATP American Sebastian Korda.

3) Sinner’s Surge: Two years ago, Jannik Sinner was aiming to crack the Top 500 for the first time. The #NextGenATP Italian has since captured the Next Gen ATP Finals crown (2019) and his maiden ATP Tour title in Sofia (2020) to rise to a career-high No. 36. The youngest player in the Top 100 will look to continue his rise in 2021 with a fast start in Melbourne.

4) Back In Business: After undergoing right knee surgery in February 2020, Kevin Anderson showed glimpses of his best form towards the end of the season with runs to the Erste Bank Open semi-finals and Roland Garros third round. The South African will be aiming to continue that progress in Melbourne, where he will attempt to win an ATP Tour title in his opening tournament of the year for the second time (2019 Pune).

5) Colombians Headline: Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah lead the way in the Great Ocean Road Open doubles draw. The top seeds, who clinched the year-end No. 1 FedEx ATP Doubles Team Ranking in 2019, share the top half of the draw with fourth seeds Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Henri Kontinen. Herbert and Kontinen could face singles stars Hubert Hurkacz and Jannik Sinner in their first match.

In the bottom half of the draw, Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares will start the second chapter of their partnership. The 2016 Australian Open and US Open champions could meet Antalya finalists Ivan Dodig and Filip Polasek in the semi-finals.

FIVE THINGS TO WATCH AT THE MURRAY RIVER OPEN
1) Strong Starter: Stan Wawrinka has won 16 tour-level titles throughout his career. This Swiss lifted four of those trophies in his first event of the year (2011, ’14-’16). Wawrinka, the top seed at the Murray River Open, will attempt to add to that record at the site of his maiden Grand Slam triumph in 2014.

2) Grigor’s Momentum: The Bulgarian reached the quarter-finals or better at his final four ATP Tour events of 2020 and also advanced to the Round of 16 at Roland Garros for the first time. Dimitrov will be able to draw confidence from memories of past success in Australia. The 29-year-old lifted the Brisbane trophy and reached the Australian Open semi-finals in 2017.

3) First Title For Felix?: Over the past two ATP Tour seasons, Felix Auger-Aliassime has finished as a runner-up at six tour-level events. The #NextGenATP Canadian, who won 22 hard court matches and reached three finals on the surface last year, will attempt to capture his first ATP Tour crown in Melbourne. Auger-Aliassime prepared for his 2021 campaign with a visit to the Rafa Nadal Academy by Movistar in Mallorca, where he set his sights on a place in the Top 10 of the FedEx ATP Rankings and a qualification spot at the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin.

4) Kyrgios Returns: For the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic began, Nick Kyrgios will compete on the ATP Tour. The 25-year-old, who did not to return to action when play resumed in 2020, will make his first appearance since the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC in February last year. Kyrgios will be aiming to lift his second ATP Tour title on home soil. The Aussie defeated defending champion Dimitrov en route to the 2018 Brisbane crown.

5) New Partnerships: Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic will attempt to lift their second title of the year at the Murray River Open. The all-Croatian pair, which claimed its maiden trophy on its team debut at the Antalya Open earlier this month, are joined in the top half of the draw by another new partnership: Marcelo Melo and Horia Tecau.

Second seeds Wesley Koolhof and Lukasz Kubot will also make their team debut in Melbourne. The second seeds share the bottom half of the draw with third seeds Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury. Ram and Salisbury claimed the biggest title of their careers in Melbourne last year, when they dropped just one set en route to the Australian Open title.

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Zverev: ‘I Want To Perform Better for Germany'

Alexander Zverev is hoping to perform better for Germany at the ATP Cup, which begins on 2 February in Melbourne. Having gone 0-3 after facing three Top 20 opponents in the tournament last year, the 23-year-old is looking to deliver against Group A opponents Serbia, the defending champion, and Canada.

“I’ve been working extremely hard in the off-season,” said Zverev. “I’d like to think that I did everything I could to be as well-prepared as I can be… I definitely want to perform better for my team, for myself. [I want to] give ourselves the best chance that we can to go deep here.”

Zverev’s path to a first ATP Cup victory is no easier this year. The 13-time ATP Tour titlist will face World No. 1 Novak Djokovic and Denis Shapovalov — one of the three men he lost to in last year’s tournament — in Group A.

“We’ll know exactly where I’m at, know exactly how my level is, know exactly what I need to improve still,” said Zverev. “There are no easy matches. I think that just shows at the ATP Cup.”

Regardless of results, one of the most exciting elements of this competition will be the return of packed crowds in Melbourne. Zverev took the chance to praise Australia’s successful approach to the COVID-19 pandemic and shared his excitement to perform in front of full stands for the first time in almost a year.

“Tennis Australia did a great job for us tennis players to still be able to feel like we can practise, we can prepare for a Grand Slam. Hopefully, we can show our best tennis,” said Zverev. “I think Australia has been dealing with coronavirus the best that any country has in the world. Being able to play in front of a crowd, not living in a bubble now during the tournament, I think a lot of players really appreciate that.”

Ahead of the 2021 ATP Tour season, Zverev parted ways with coach David Ferrer. The Spaniard began working with Zverev in July last year, prior to the 6’6” right-hander’s run to his maiden Grand Slam final at the US Open. Zverev will continue to work with his father, Alexander Zverev Sr. and receive support from his brother and former Top 30 player Mischa Zverev.

“I think we left everything open with David. I think with my dad and with my brother, Mischa, who was with me during the US Open, more involved now, I have a great coaching team,” said Zverev. “I think I can win big tournaments with the coaching staff that I have.”

Mischa will play an integral role at this year’s ATP Cup. Not only will he support his brother, he will lead his nation as Captain. The 2017 Australian Open quarter-finalist emphasised the importance of team spirit ahead of Germany’s first tie against Canada on Day 2.

“It’s a unique experience… I hope we can, first of all, have a good time together as a team and win some matches,” said Zverev. “I think the biggest challenge for every captain is to create a team spirit so that every member of the team is really feeling like they’re an important part of the whole ensemble. We go out there, we win together, we lose together, but at the end of the day we still have dinner as a team and we can still smile and laugh and get ready for the next days.”

With two wins from three matches, Jan-Lennard Struff was Germany’s most successful player at last year’s ATP Cup. The German returns this year as the No. 2 singles player and will open Germany’s Group A ties with matches against Dusan Lajovic and Milos Raonic.

“I’m really excited. It was a very good event last year. It was beautiful to start the year off with such a nice event,” said Struff. “I’m very happy to be able to participate this year again. It’s a privilege to be here. It’s an honour to play for my country again. It’s going to be very challenging. We have a tough group.”

If Zverev and Struff claim one victory from the opening two matches of the tie, the fate of Germany will rest in experienced hands. For the second straight year, two-time Roland Garros champions Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies will represent their country in Australia.

Last year, Krawietz and Mies claimed one win from three doubles encounters. Mies is confident that the pair can improve on that record in 2021 and do their part to provide Germany with a better chance of reaching the knockout stage.

“I don’t think it’s extra pressure. We’ve been in the situation before… I think we had a good pre-season. We’re ready to play,” said Mies. “We know the situation. We know if it’s 1-all, it comes down to us. We feel confident. I think we’re a great team. We hope for the best. I think we underperformed a little bit last year as a team, as a whole group. I thought Struff played extremely well. I think Sascha and me and Kevin, we can do a bit better this year.”

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Australian Open: ATP Cup among six warm-up events at Melbourne Park this week

The world’s top tennis players come out of quarantine to warm up for the Australian Open as Melbourne Park hosts six simultaneous events.

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Kyrgios: 'I Feel Mentally Completely Refreshed'

After spending almost a year away from the courts, World No. 47 Nick Kyrgios is eager to get back in the action as he kicks off the season on home soil at the Murray River Open alongside top seed Stan Wawrinka and #NextGenATP Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime.

Kyrgios last played at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC last February, opting not to compete after the Tour’s five-month suspension due to the COVID-19 pandemic. For the often restless 25-year-old, the unexpected time off at home gave him a much-needed chance to recharge that he said has left him feeling mentally “refreshed”.

“Last year was a crazy year. I was incredibly lucky to just be with my family and friends and just kind of reset on everything,” Kyrgios said in a pre-tournament press conference. “I feel mentally completely refreshed, ready to go again.”

During the Tour’s five-month stoppage, Kyrgios stayed away from the tennis courts as he took advantage of the time off to immerse himself in other interests. But he got right back to work as this Australian swing approached, enjoying the relaxed restrictions in his hometown to continue training.

“I was lucky enough that Jordan Thompson came down to Canberra for the past month, so we were training together,” Kyrgios said, revealing that he’s been hitting for two hours a day for the past several months ahead of the Melbourne events. “I just felt mentally I felt like I was in a place [of] wanting to play and [I] feel refreshed.”

Kyrgios will have to be in top form from the start as he faces an early challenge at the Murray River Open. He will open against France’s Alexandre Muller, and could face Bernard Tomic in their first Tour-level clash should they both advance to the second round.

“I’m just happy to be around it again. I am excited to get out there and play,” Kyrgios said. “[Let’s] see how it goes. Hopefully I can have some good results, as well…

“Everyone is really playing it by ear. Nobody really knows who is in form and who is not. I’m going to take it day by day and try to enjoy myself as much as I can.”

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Hewitt Counting On Australia To ‘Leave It All Out There’ In ATP Cup

Australian ATP Cup captain Lleyton Hewitt knows his players have their work cut out for them as Alex de Minaur and John Millman lead the charge against Spain and Greece in Group B.

Hewitt will once again be counting on World No.23 De Minaur in the pivotal role as Australia’s No. 1 singles player, a position he thrived in last year when he posted a come-from-behind upset over Alexander Zverev and pushed World No. 2 Rafael Nadal to the limit in a three-set marathon.

The 21-year-old also comes into this year’s tournament as one of the players with the most momentum after starting the season with a victory at the season-opening Antalya Open, an ATP 250 event.

Listen to Hewitt’s ATP Tennis Radio interview:

“He’s got to be, in my mind, probably the quickest guy out there on Tour,” Hewitt said in an interview with ATP Tennis Radio. “How he gets back into his position after each shot is fantastic. He’s got great footwork, he’s got really good balance and he’s starting to add some real weapons to his game.

“He had a hell of a match against Rafa last year in Sydney… He knows it’s going to be an awfully big challenge, but one thing for Alex: he’s going to leave it all out there for us.”

The former World No. 1 was the captain a year ago as Australia reached the last four of the inaugural ATP Cup, only to lose in a heartbreaker against Spain. Now they’ll get another shot at the No. 2 seeds, a strong team led by Rafael Nadal that also features Roberto Bautista Agut, Pablo Carreno Busta and Marcel Granollers.

“They’re one of the strongest nations, led by Rafa obviously but Bautista Agut is also a quality player. He’s certainly one of the strongest No. 2s they can put on any team,” Hewitt highlighted. “We’re going to have to be on our game… We know it’s going to be a challenge, but I’ve got a good feeling that our boys are going to enjoy feeling like the underdogs in this one.”

Check out more from the ATP Tennis Radio interview to hear Hewitt discuss how Millman will be a big asset, why doubles will play a very important role, and what the ATP Cup means for Australian tennis.

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Will Goffin Face 17-Year-Old Sensation Alcaraz In Great Ocean Road Open?

Top seed David Goffin has a bye in the first round of the Great Ocean Road Open, but he could face a stern test against a 17-year-old sensation in the second round.

Goffin, who reached the semi-finals of the Antalya Open to start his season, could play Carlos Alcaraz, the Newcomer of the Year in the 2020 ATP Awards. The Spanish teen, who earlier this year qualified for the Australian Open, will battle Hungarian Attila Balazs in the first round. Former World No. 1 Juan Carlos Ferrero coaches Alcaraz, who is already a three-time ATP Challenger Tour champion.

VIEW DRAW

Alcaraz isn’t the only #NextGenATP star in the Great Ocean Road Open draw, though. Jannik Sinner, the 2019 Next Gen ATP Finals titlist, will play veteran Yen-Hsun Lu or home favourite Aleksandar Vukic in the second round. Other players to watch in the Italian’s quarter are seventh seed Miomir Kecmanovic and two-time Australian Open quarter-finalist Tennys Sandgren. 

There are several big hitters in the field, including second seed Karen Khachanov, who will open against 2020 Australian Open doubles finalist Max Purcell or Norbert Gombos. If the Russian wins his matches, there could be some tricky opponents in his path, with sixth seed Reilly Opelka, 16th seed Feliciano Lopez and former World No. 5 Kevin Anderson in his quarter.

Hubert Hurkacz got off to a flying start in 2021 when he captured the Delray Beach Open by VITACOST.com title. The third seed will try to maintain his momentum in Melbourne, where he will play Pedro Martinez or Mikael Torpegaard in the second round. Eighth seed Alexander Bublik is also in his quarter. The Kazakh, who has become one of the flashiest players on the ATP Tour with his sizzling strokes and underarm serve, will open against Dominik Koepfer or Christopher O’Connell.

Two players who competed on the same college team, ninth seed Sandgren and John-Patrick Smith, will clash in the first round. At the University of Tennessee in 2011, Smith played No. 1 singles and Sandgren No. 3 singles. Both players have won ATP Tour titles, with Sandgren triumphing once in singles and Smith lifting a doubles trophy.

Other first-round matches to watch include 14th seed Pablo Andujar facing hot-shot machine Pablo Cuevas, Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Maxime Cressy meeting in a battle of net-rushers, and 15th seed Vasek Pospisil playing lefty Thiago Monteiro.

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Kyrgios Could Face Tomic in Murray River Open R2

It’s safe to say you’ll need some popcorn if Nick Kyrgios and Bernard Tomic clash in the second round of next week’s Murray River Open.

The Aussies are two of the most captivating players on the ATP Tour. And if they both win their first-round match at Melbourne Park, they will play each other for the first time at tour-level. Kyrgios will play his first match since the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC last February against Alexandre Muller, and Tomic will face countryman Marc Polmans.

VIEW DRAW

Top seed Stan Wawrinka, the World No. 3, faces a daunting section at the ATP 250. The Swiss will play one of two veterans — Juan Ignacio Londero or Mikhail Kukushkin — in his season opener. The first seeded player he could face is 14th seed Richard Gasquet, the former World No. 7, who owns a 2-1 lead in their ATP Head2Head series.

Also in the top quarter of the draw are sixth seed Taylor Fritz and 2014 US Open champion Marin Cilic. Former World No. 3 Cilic, seeded 11th, will open his season against big-hitting Frenchman Jeremy Chardy in one of the draw’s most intriguing first-round matches. They have played six times previously, with Cilic leading their rivalry 4-2.

Third seed Felix Auger-Aliassime will begin his 2021 campaign against Quentin Halys or Yuichi Sugita. The #NextGenATP Canadian, who could battle Norwegian star Casper Ruud in the quarter-finals, is pursuing his first ATP Tour title.

Second seed Grigor Dimitrov, the 2017 Nitto ATP Finals champion, could get Australian revenge against 15th seed Tommy Paul in the third round. One year ago, the American outlasted Dimitrov in a four-hour, 19-minute five-set thriller at the Australian Open. The Bulgarian returned the favour at the US Open, where he triumphed in straight sets.

Fourth seed Borna Coric will begin his year against Finland’s Emil Ruusuvuori or former Top 20 star Viktor Troicki, who will also be the Serbian captain in the ATP Cup.

First-round matches to watch include Corentin Moutet against Frances Tiafoe, 10th seed Adrian Mannarino facing Mikael Ymer and Thanasi Kokkinakis against Alex Bolt in a battle of Aussies who have overcome adversity throughout their careers.

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#NextGenATP Nakashima Carries Hot Streak Into Quimper Semis

When Brandon Nakashima is this dialed in, there is no stopping the #NextGenATP American.

Nakashima booked his spot in the semi-finals at the ATP Challenger Tour event in Quimper, France, on Friday, ousting home hope Constant Lestienne 6-4, 7-5 in one hour and 39 minutes. Broken just once all week at the Open Quimper Bretagne Occidentale, the 19-year-old is picking up where he left off to conclude his breakthrough 2020 campaign.

Nakashima stormed back from a second-set deficit to dispatch Lestienne, reeling off four straight games when the Frenchman served to force a decider. Having also earned convincing wins over Maxime Janvier and Federico Gaio earlier in the week, the California native is just one victory from reaching his second Challenger final.

It has been a ruthless run of late for Nakashima, who owns nine wins from his last 10 matches at the Challenger level. Also the champion in Orlando to cap the 2020 season, he will look to extend his hot streak against Slovakia’s Filip Horansky on Saturday.

Watch Free Live Streaming From The ATP Challenger Tour

At the age of 28, Horansky is playing some of the best tennis of his career. The World No. 184 upset top seed Lucas Pouille, before storming past another former Top 50 opponent in Maximilian Marterer. In the quarter-finals, he would take down an in-form Kacper Zuk 6-3, 7-5, converting all three break points earned. Competing in a Challenger semi-final for the first time since 2019, Horansky will face Nakashima for a spot in the championship.

In other action, Sebastian Korda made it two #NextGenATP Americans in Saturday’s semis. The second-seeded 20-year-old advanced when France’s Enzo Couacaud retired with a lower back ailment at 4-1 in the first set. After battling through a pair of deciding-set marathons to kick off his Quimper campaign, Korda spent just 22 minutes on court before Couacaud was forced to stop.

The champion in Eckental, Germany to end 2020 and runner-up at the ATP 250 event in Delray Beach to open 2021, Korda is projected to crack the Top 100 of the FedEx ATP Rankings on Monday. He will look to reach his third straight final when he faces Benjamin Bonzi next. Bonzi has been in a groove of his own, having also finished runner-up last week in Istanbul.

The Frenchman earned a third straight deciding-set victory on Friday, overcoming qualifier Illya Marchenko 6-7(7), 6-4, 6-4. After outlasting Marc-Andrea Huesler and Yannick Maden in third-set tie-breaks earlier in the week, he needed two hours and 42 minutes to edge Marchenko.

In the doubles championship, it will be Jamie Cerretani and Marc-Andrea Huesler facing French duo Gregoire Barrere and Albano Olivetti. Barrere and Olivetti are seeking their second team title after winning on the indoor hard courts of Parma last year.

Santillan

Quarters Set In Antalya
It was picture perfect conditions for a second straight day at the Club Megasaray Open, as the quarter-final slate was completed. Following nearly five straight days of stormy weather, it was survival of the fittest on Friday in Antalya.

Croatian teen Duje Ajdukovic rallied from a set down and saved a match point in defeating Italian veteran Paolo Lorenzi 3-6, 6-4, 7-6(7) in nearly three hours. The qualifier won his fourth match in three days and will face another ATP stalwart in Tommy Robredo on Saturday.

Meanwhile, Akira Santillan earned the upset of the week in dismissing second seed Daniel Elahi Galan 6-2, 2-6, 7-5. The Aussie is set to battle Lorenzo Musetti next. The #NextGenATP Italian had the day off after earning a pair of victories on Thursday, dropping a combined six games to reach the quarters.

Saturday’s other quarterfinals feature top seed Jaume Munar against Italy’s Alessandro Giannessi and Turkish wild card Cem Ilkel against lucky loser Tomas Martin Etcheverry.

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Australian Open to allow up to 30,000 fans to attend per day

Up to 30,000 fans a day will be allowed to attend the Australian Open, Victoria’s minister for sport has announced.

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