Tennis News

Opelka/Sinner Make Perfect Team Debut In Atlanta

American Reilly Opelka and Italian Jannik Sinner made the most of their team debut this week at the Truist Atlanta Open, defeating American Steve Johnson and Australian Jordan Thompson 6-4, 6-7(6), 10-3 to lift the trophy.

“He gets more [credit] because he was serving very, very good and today obviously he was returning well,” Sinner said. “At the end of the day, we had a lot of fun the whole week. Thanks to him for playing with me.”

Both men were appearing in their first tour-level doubles final, and they completed their impressive run at the ATP 250 by triumphing in the championship match after one hour and 23 minutes.

“It was fun,” Opelka said. “You get a guy [with] returns as good as Jannik’s, you can beat anyone. It was unbelievable. Seriously, it was impressive to watch and it was fun to be around a guy like him. He’s 19, but you wouldn’t know it. He’s so far ahead of his age and you can tell his mind works differently than a lot of the other guys’.”

Opelka and Sinner did not lose a set en route to the final, including an upset of second seeds Jonathan Erlich of Israel and Santiago Gonzalez of Mexico in the first round. They needed a Match Tie-break in the championship match to emerge victorious, and they came up with clutch returns — winning four of their six return points — to finish the job.

Johnson and Thompson were also playing together for the first time this week, and they won a Match Tie-break in the semi-finals to advance this far. They each have won one ATP Tour doubles title (Johnson with Querrey, Thompson with Kokkinakis).

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Isner Serves Revenge Against Nakashima, Wins Sixth Atlanta Title

John Isner served fellow American Brandon Nakashima 21 aces and a dose of revenge on Sunday evening. One week after losing against his #NextGenATP countryman in the Los Cabos semi-finals, Isner beat Nakashima 7-6(8), 7-5 to win his sixth Truist Atlanta Open title.

The 36-year-old is just the fourth active player to lift at least six trophies at a tour-level tournament, joining Roger Federer (seven events), Rafael Nadal (four events) and Novak Djokovic (four events).

“This tournament has meant everything for my career,” Isner said in his on-court interview. “It’s absolutely amazing.”

Make that 6️⃣ Atlanta titles for @JohnIsner ?

He prevails 7-6(8), 7-5 in an all-?? battle with Nakashima.

?: @TennisTV | @ATLOpenTennis pic.twitter.com/h8m8CHLTSx

— ATP Tour (@atptour) August 1, 2021

Isner earned four championship points on Nakashima’s serve at 5-4 in the second set. In a flash, it was his opponent who had two chances to break and serve for a third set. But the six-time champion held his nerve and earned the lone service break of the match at 6-5 to triumph on Stadium Court after one hour and 56 minutes.

Last week at the Mifel Open, Nakashima beat Isner 7-5, 6-4 to reach his first ATP Tour final. Although he fell short against Cameron Norrie, the 19-year-old had another opportunity to become the youngest American champion on the ATP Tour since 19-year-old Andy Roddick in Houston 19 years ago. But instead, Isner rode his serve to his 16th tour-level crown.

Much like their Los Cabos duel, this clash was dominated by the serve. But this time, while Nakashima had his opportunities, Isner was more consistent in the biggest moments. The World No. 35 saved two set points in the first set and surged late in the second to level the pair’s ATP Head2Head series at 1-1. 

^{Photo Credit: Truist Atlanta Open/Alex Smith}
Nakashima served well throughout the match, using his slice out wide and his second serve to the body to great effect. He earned his first set point of the opener on Isner’s serve at 6-5, but the veteran put away a short forehand to escape trouble. The former World No. 8 faced another set point at 6/7 in the tie-break, but came up with a crisp low forehand volley.

“Obviously I play a lot of those. It’s a situation that I’m comfortable in because I’ve been on Tour forever,” Isner said. “I think today I was just a little bit luckier and that’s really what it came down to.” 

That was when Nakashima’s inconsistency came into play. The #NextGenATP star attempted a flashy leaping backhand at 8/8, but missed in the net. He then missed a second-serve return long to give Isner the set.

Nakashima was in deep trouble at 4-5 in the second set when serving at 0/40. But the young American remained calm and played aggressive tennis to save four championship points and take the momentum. It was that focus that helped the teen make two impressive runs over the past two weeks.

Isner was under pressure in the next game facing two break points, but served his way out of trouble. And one game later, Nakashima hit a double fault that ricocheted off the top of the net to give Isner the victory. Nakashima did not become the youngest Atlanta champion in tournament history, but he is still projected to crack the Top 100 of the FedEx ATP Rankings on Monday.

“It was two great weeks for me for sure. It definitely gives me a lot of confidence in my game knowing that I could hang with these top guys and produce good tennis in back-to-back weeks,” Nakashima said. “Leading into the next few tournaments and the US Open I know that I’m playing well and I know I could make deep runs there.”

Isner, who went to a deciding set in three of his five matches, clinched his first tour-level crown since 2019 Newport and is now 36-5 in Atlanta. The 36-year-old hit a tournament record 127 aces during the week.

“It’ll give me a lot of confidence for sure,” Isner said. “Hopefully I can take this and go forward and build some momentum for the tournaments ahead.”

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Scouting Report: Nadal & Felix Lead The Way In Washington

Some of tennis’ biggest talents are set to compete In Washington, D.C. this week at the Citi Open. Leading the way is Spanish star Rafael Nadal, who is making his debut at the ATP 500 hard-court event.

Top seed Nadal will be joined by #NextGenATP stars Felix Auger-Aliassime, Jannik Sinner, and Sebastian Korda as well as Australians Alex de Minaur and Nick Kyrgios. 

Before play begins, ATPTour.com looks at 10 things to watch in Washington.

View Draws: Singles | Doubles

1) Nadal Debut: Nadal is making his debut in Washington and will headline the field as the top seed. The 35-year-old wild card will be aiming to capture an 89th tour-level title in the United States’ capital. The legendary lefty has already lifted trophies this season in Barcelona and Rome. It will be Nadal’s first tournament since he reached the Roland Garros semi-finals in June, and he will play American Jack Sock or Japanese lefty Yoshihito Nishioka in his opener.

2) Felix In Form: #NextGenATP star Auger-Aliassime arrives in Washington on the back of a strong grass-court season. The 20-year-old reached his eighth ATP Tour final at the MercedesCup in Stuttgart and advanced to his first Grand Slam quarter-final at Wimbledon. The Canadian suffered a surprise loss to Australian Max Purcell in the first round at the Tokyo Olympics, but will hope to return to winning ways as he makes his second appearance at this ATP 500 event. In 2019, Auger-Aliassime made the Round of 16 in Washington.

3) Former Champs Kyrgios & Nishikori Return: Defending champion Nick Kyrgios and 2015 titlist Kei Nishikori will compete here again. Kyrgios went on a memorable run to the Citi Open trophy two years ago, when he saved a match point against Stefanos Tsitsipas in the semi-finals and beat Daniil Medvedev in the final. The Australian will open against home favourite Mackenzie McDonald.

Nishikori is fresh off a quarter-final showing at the Tokyo Olympics, where he defeated World No. 7 Andrey Rublev in the first round. The Japanese star, who has made at least the quarter-finals in his past four Washington appearances, will begin his campaign against American Sam Querrey in the first round.

4) American Contingent: With qualifying still to be completed, there are already 13 Americans in the Washington main draw, with eighth seed Reilly Opelka leading the way. Three other seeded players are competing at home in the United States capital: 10th seed Taylor Fritz, 12th seed Korda, and 16th seed Frances Tiafoe.

Three of the tournament’s wild cards went to Americans: #NextGenATP stars Brandon Nakashima and Jenson Brooksby as well as Sock. Nakashima has made back-to-back finals in Los Cabos and Atlanta, while Brooksby advanced to his maiden tour-level championship match in Newport.

5) Korda Flying: Korda, who trained with his idol Nadal on Saturday evening, is making his debut at the ATP 500 tournament. The 21-year-old has broken new ground this year, winning a maiden ATP Tour title in Parma in May and advancing to the fourth round at Wimbledon. Currently No. 47 in the FedEx ATP Rankings, one spot below his career-high of No. 46, Korda could face Sinner in the third round. He has enjoyed success in the United States, having made his first tour-level final this year in Delray Beach and battling to his first Masters 1000 quarter-final in Miami.

^{Photo Credit: Peter Staples/Citi Open}
6) Will Sinner Return To Winning Ways? #NextGenATP Italian Sinner is the fifth seed in Washington on his debut at the ATP 500 event. The 19-year-old in March became just the fourth teenager to reach the Miami Open presented by Itau final, but he arrives in Washington aiming to snap a four-match losing streak. The fifth seed, who was victorious at the Great Ocean Road Open in Melbourne earlier this year, will play Emil Ruusuvuori or a qualifier in the second round.

7) Former Finalist De Minaur: Australia’s De Minaur will return to Washington with fond memories after enjoying a run to the 2018 final, in which he fell to German Alexander Zverev. That was De Minaur’s second ATP Tour final, and his second defeat in a championship match. Since, he has claimed five tour-level titles.

The third seed will be competing in his first event on hard courts since the Miami Open presented by Itau in March. De Minaur is in the same section of the draw as Auger-Aliassime.

8) Dimitrov Is Back: Fourth seed Dimitrov is playing in Washington for the sixth time, but this is his first appearance since 2017. The Bulgarian will be looking to capture his first ATP Tour title since triumphing at the 2017 Nitto ATP Finals. The 30-year-old will face either Egor Gerasimov or Ilya Ivashka in his opening match at this tournament, where he made the quarter-finals in 2013.

9) Can Norrie Keep Winning? Briton Cameron Norrie arrives in Washington having captured his first ATP Tour trophy one week ago at the Mifel Open in Los Cabos. The lefty has claimed 36 tour-level wins this season, rising to a career-high No. 29 in the FedEx ATP Rankings. The 25-year-old will begin against Marcos Giron or a qualifier and could meet Nadal in the quarter-finals.

10) Peers/Polasek Lead Doubles Field: Australian-Slovakian tandem John Peers and Filip Polasek are the top seeds in the doubles field. This will be their team debut. Peers, who won an bronze medal in the mixed doubles (w/Barty) at the Tokyo Olympics, and Polasek will face Australians De Minaur and John Millman in the first round.

Briton Neal Skupski and New Zealand’s Michael Venus are the second seeds, Indian Rohan Bopanna and Croatian Ivan Dodig are seeded third and South African Raven Klaasen and Japan’s Ben McLachlan are the fourth seeds. Sinner and Korda will compete together, as will Kyrgios and Tiafoe.

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Nadal On Korda: 'He Is Going To Be A Great One'

Sebastian Korda idolised Rafael Nadal so much that he named his cat after the legendary lefty. So it was a special experience for the #NextGenATP to train with the Spanish superstar on Saturday evening ahead of the Citi Open. Nadal was left impressed.

“[His game has a] good physical look, good serve, good shots from the baseline. I think he’s a great guy, [a] complete player,” Nadal said. “He has a lot of things to do in the next years in our sport.”

The pair opened their ATP Head2Head series last year at Roland Garros, where Nadal defeated Korda in the fourth round. After the match, the lefty signed a shirt for the rising star, who greatly enjoyed the opportunity to play his hero.

“He’s my biggest idol. He’s one of the reasons I play tennis. Just watching him play, [he is an] unbelievable competitor,” Korda said at the time. “Just from him I have the never-give-up mentality. Whenever I’m on court, I try to be like him. Growing up, I named my cat Rafa after him. That says a lot about how much I love the guy.”

Last year when they played in Paris, Korda was No. 213 in the FedEx ATP Rankings. Now the American is World No. 47, one spot off his career-best mark. Nadal was not taken off guard by the 21-year-old’s ascent.

“I think I always believed since I saw him play that he is going to have the chance to be one of the best players of the world,” Nadal said. “Let’s see. It’s always the same. I think he has all the things that he needs to definitely be a top guy. Of course, things are not easy and you need to keep improving.

“But I definitely believe, if you ask me, [that[ he [is] going to be a great one.”

Nadal and Korda are on opposite halves of the Citi Open draw. The top-seeded Spaniard will open against Japanese lefty Yoshihito Nishioka or American wild card Jack Sock. Korda, seeded 12th, will play Canadian Vasek Pospisil or a qualifier/special exempt.

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Tourist Rafa Raves About Washington; Says Djokovic Can Win Grand Slam

Rafael Nadal has never been to Washington, D.C. before arriving for this week’s Citi Open, and the Spaniard is already making himself at home. The top seed on Saturday woke at 6:30 a.m. due to jetlag and went for a 90-minute walk around the capital of the United States.

“I love to be here in Washington because it’s not only a new event for me, it’s a new city. I am able to visit one of the most important cities in the world. And honestly, it’s a very beautiful city,” Nadal said during his pre-tournament press conference. “I have been able to walk around a little bit the past couple of days. I am very impressed. I hope to have a chance to visit a little bit more [of] the city during the next couple of days.

“But what I saw [was] so beautiful. [It is] a very green city, [it has] lower buildings than most of the big American cities. I am enjoying the city, I’m enjoying the people. [I am] having fun.”

Although Nadal missed Wimbledon, he saw World No. 1 Novak Djokovic win his third major title of the season at SW19, putting the Serbian a US Open trophy away from becoming the first man to complete the calendar-year Grand Slam since Rod Laver in 1969.

“He’s already won three, so when you win three, you can win four, without a doubt,” Nadal said. “He’s going to be playing on hard courts, probably his best surface, so why not? Of course it’s something difficult. [There are] going to be other guys that want to achieve the last Slam of the season. But of course he’s one of the clear favourites.”

This North American hard-court swing is also an important one for Nadal, who is tied with Djokovic for the most Grand Slam singles titles with 20 and level with Djokovic for the record of ATP Masters 1000 crowns with 36. The Spaniard has certainly been impressed by Djokovic so far in 2021, and he will work hard to make his own historical pursuits over the coming weeks.

“What he achieved this year is something, well, amazing,” Nadal said of Djokovic. “I definitely believe that he can do it, without a doubt.”

Nadal has not competed since Roland Garros due to a foot injury that kept him off the court for 20 days. The lefty returned to practice for 30 minutes and then built himself up to a return in Washington.

“Playing in Washington allows me to be on the tour one week before than what I do usually for this part of the season. But missing Wimbledon, I think that’s the right thing to do. The decision I think is the right one,” Nadal said. “Super happy to be here. [The] tournament organisation is doing amazing.”

There is an element of uncertainty for Nadal, who has not played a tournament for nearly two months. But the 88-time tour-level titlist is working hard to raise his level as much as possible before he plays Japanese lefty Yoshihito Nishioka or American wild card Jack Sock in the second round.

“I don’t know how long it will take to recover everything, but the only thing I can say is I’m here just to try my best in every single moment. I hope the past couple of days of practices keep helping me to be competitive enough for the first round,” Nadal said. “I am excited to be back playing in America after more than a year without playing here, especially playing in front of the full crowd, full stadiums.”

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Tokyo Olympics: Watch Alexander Zverev's best shots in men's singles final against Karen Khachanov

Watch the best shots as Alexander Zverev beats Karen Khachanov in straight sets to win the men’s singles gold at Tokyo 2020.

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Pavlyuchenkova/Rublev Save 1 M.P., Win Olympic Gold

The ROC’s Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Andrey Rublev ended their dream week in Tokyo in style on Sunday as they defeated compatriots Aslan Karatsev and Elena Vesnina 6-3, 6-7(5), 13-11 to capture the Olympic mixed doubles gold medal.

They won 79 per cent (47/61) of points on their first serve and saved one match point at 9/10 in a dramatic Match Tie-break before closing out victory in one hour and 55 minutes.

View Order Of Play | View 2020 Olympics Results | View Mixed Doubles Draw

The fourth seeds were teaming for the first time this week in Tokyo. They also saved one match point in their semi-final victory over Australians Ashleigh Barty and John Peers on Friday. Rublev has won two ATP Tour doubles titles in his career, with his most recent success coming in Doha (w/Karatsev) in March, while Pavlyuchenkova has claimed five doubles titles on the WTA Tour.

In an entertaining first set, breaks were exchanged at the start before Pavlyuchenkova and Rublev began to find their rhythm from the baseline on return as they raced into a 5-2 lead. They closed the set out on serve and then fended off two set points at 4-5 on Rublev’s serve as the second set moved to a tie-break. Karatsev and Vesnina then raised their game to level and force a Match Tie-break.

Pavlyuchenkova and Rublev played aggressively in the decider, battling back from 4/7 behind, saving one match point at 9/10 before clinching victory to improve to 4-0 in Match Tie-breaks this week.

Karatsev and Vesnina were competing together for the second time in Tokyo, having enjoyed a run to the championship match at Roland Garros in June. They overcame Serbians Novak Djokovic and Nina Stojanovic on Friday to reach the gold medal clash, not dropping a set en route to the final. They will leave Tokyo with a silver medal.

The ROC has collected three Olympic tennis medals in Tokyo, with Karen Khachanov winning a silver medal in the men’s singles.

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Zverev Captures Olympic Gold In Tokyo

As far as Olympic debuts go, they don’t get much better than Alexander Zverev’s performance this week in Tokyo. The German captured the gold medal on Sunday, producing a dominant display to defeat the ROC’s Karen Khachanov 6-3, 6-1 in 79 minutes at the Tokyo Olympics.

Zverev guaranteed himself at least a silver medal on Friday when he battled back from a set down to upset top seed Novak Djokovic to end the Serbian’s hopes of a historic Golden Grand Slam.

View Order Of Play | View 2020 Olympics Results | View Draw

The fourth seed backed that performance up by serving well and hitting the ball with great power throughout Sunday’s final against Khachanov. The 24-year-old won 87 per cent (26/30) of his first-service points and fired 22 winners to become the first German man to win an Olympic singles gold medal in tennis.

Zverev, who dropped just one set in Tokyo, has won ATP Tour titles at the Mutua Madrid Open and the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC this year.

In a lively start, Zverev broke early to move 3-1 ahead in the first set as he struck the ball with consistent depth, forcing Khachanov back behind the baseline. The World No. 5 played aggressive tennis, but also demonstrated his defensive skills as he chased down every ball to move ahead.

Zverev carried this momentum with him into the second set as he combined a mixture of power with good touch to cause Khachanov further problems. He produced a near-perfect set, committing just seven unforced errors to claim victory.

Khachanov overcame Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta on Friday to claim his spot in the gold medal match. The 25-year-old, who has enjoyed runs to the semi-finals at the Open Parc Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes Lyon and the Great Ocean Road Open this year, leaves Tokyo with a silver medal.

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Tokyo Olympics: Barbora Krejcikova & Katerina Siniakova win women's tennis doubles gold

Top seeds Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova produce a superb performance to win the women’s doubles gold medal at Tokyo 2020.

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#NextGenATP Nakashima Battles Into Second Final In Atlanta

Brandon Nakashima has ensured an all-American final at the Truist Atlanta Open after rallying from a set down against Finland’s Emil Ruusuvuori to win 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 on Saturday. 

The 19-year-old advanced to the second ATP Tour final of his career, and the second in as many weeks after his run last week in Los Cabos. He will face the winner of fifth seed Taylor Fritz and five-time champion John Isner for a shot at the ATP 250 title. 

Nakashima, who improved to 8-3 on the season with the victory, is set to rise into the Top 100 in the FedEx ATP Rankings on Monday. Currently World No. 115, he will be the youngest American in the Top 100.

To get there, Nakashima had to halt the in-form Ruusuvuori, who toppled the third seed Cameron Norrie and seventh seed Benoit Paire en route to his first ATP Tour semi-final. The American recovered after dropping the opening set, firing 14 aces and breaking serve three times to seal the victory. 

“He came out playing really well, and I got off to a slow start,” Nakashima said. “But I just told myself to stick to my tactics out there, and I just served a lot better in the second and third sets. That really helped my ground game a lot. I’m definitely happy to get through this.”

Ruusuvuori came out swinging in the opening set, dominating from the baseline as he created break opportunities in all but one of Nakashima’s five service games and converting on two occasions. But in the second set, the Finn offered up three double faults in the same game to hand Nakashima an early lead, and the 19-year-old never looked back. 

Nakashima won 100 per cent (19/19) of his first-serve points in the second set and 92 per cent (12/13) in the third set, effectively keeping his opponent on the back foot. He dropped just two points behind his serve in the second set as he levelled the match, and broke serve twice in the third set to seal the victory after an hour and 55 minutes.

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