Fresh off winning his first ATP Tour title in Hamburg, #NextGenATP Italian Lorenzo Musetti remained in top form at the Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag on Tuesday. The 20-year-old earned a 6-2, 3-6, 6-1 win against Slovakia’s Aljaz Bedene.

“I think I learned a lot from last week,” Musetti said post-match. “I think I grew up as a human being, as a professional player. There were a lot of difficult moments in this match, but I arrived in a positive way.

“That’s why I won today, because Aljaz was playing really good, especially in the second set and the beginning of the third. So it was not easy for me to find a way to break his game.”

Entering Umag at a career-high of No. 31 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, Musetti picked up where he left off in his Hamburg final victory against Carlos Alcaraz. The Italian eased to the opening set as he showcased his variety from all parts of the court before Bedene snapped back in the second set, overcoming an early break deficit as he hit through the court with his power game.

The men traded breaks early in the deciding set, but it was all Musetti down the stretch. The Italian won the final four games in convincing fashion, finishing the match with a delicate drop shot to close out a love hold. After requiring six match points to dismiss Alcaraz in Hamburg, one was enough for Musetti in Umag.

“I came yesterday [to Umag] so it was not easy to rest and to to recover at 100 per cent,” Musetti said. “I wasn’t sure about my physical condition but I’m very happy about the win.”

The eighth seed can now look ahead to an all-Italian second-round match against Marco Cecchinato, who was a 6-1, 5-7, 6-2 winner against Mili Poljicak on Monday. Musetti won their lone previous ATP Head2Head meeting in five sets at Roland Garros in 2021. Earlier this season, the Italians teamed up for the doubles event in Marrakech.

“It’s a friendly derby,” Musetti previewed. “We are really close friends. He’s one of my best friends on Tour… I’m happy to share the court with him and have a fun battle with him.”

Fifth seed Alex Molcan also advanced on Tuesday with a 6-2, 7-6(2) win against Duje Ajdukovic. Slovakia’s Molcan, a three-time tour-level finalist, is seeking his first title this week.

In a see-saw match that featured 10 breaks of serve in 20 games, Molcan was six of eight on his break chances, winning more than half of return points against both first and second serves. From 3-0 in the opening set, seven straight games went against serve.

He next faces Spain’s Roberto Carballes Baena, a 6-4, 7-5 winner against Henri Laaksonen on Monday.

France’s Corentin Moutet scored a 6-4, 6-2 upset against sixth seed Daniel Altmaier to set up a second-round meeting with Facundo Bagnis. The Argentine earned a 7-5, 6-3 victory against countryman Tomas Martin Etcheverry on Tuesday.

Second seed Jannik Sinner (vs. Jaume Munar) and third seed Casper Ruud (vs. Bernabe Zapata Miralles) open their Umag campaigns on Wednesday, with top seed Carlos Alcaraz (vs. Norbert Gombos) and fourth seed Sebastian Baez (vs. Laslo Djere or Franco Agamenone) set to open play on Thursday.

Jenson Brooksby made a perfect Atlanta Open debut on Tuesday when he eliminated Frenchman Benoit Paire 6-3, 6-1 to reach the second round.

“It feels really nice to be back in the States,” Brooksby said. “Always after two, three weeks off of matches it feels good to get a win under your belt and I thought that was a really solid match to start and I’ve been training really well too, so I’m excited with the path I’m on right now.”

The American got off to a quick start to his season, reaching the final in Dallas and winning three matches each at ATP Masters 1000 events at Indian Wells and Miami. But he went 5-8 during the clay and grass seasons.

While the 21-year-old used that as a learning experience, he is happy to be back on the hard courts.

“I had a really good hard-court season last year too and we learned things through the clay and grass this year,” Brooksby said. “I’m excited to be back on hard, definitely [being] back in the States and I think I can even do much better than last year.”

In an All-American clash, fifth seed Tommy Paul eased past wild card Jack Sock 6-1, 6-1. Paul broke his countryman’s serve six times to set a second-round clash against frequent practice partner Soonwoo Kwon of South Korea.

Reigning Winston-Salem champion Ilya Ivashka also moved on with a 6-0, 3-6, 6-3 win against Frenchman Quentin Halys. The 28-year-old will play top seed Reilly Opelka for a spot in the quarter-finals.

Germans Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies have already lifted trophies in Barcelona and Munich this season. On Tuesday, they made a good start towards earning a third crown in 2022.

The two-time Roland Garros champions defeated Spaniards Albert Ramos-Vinolas and Carlos Taberner 6-3, 6-3 to reach the quarter-finals of the Generali Open in Kitzbühel. The second seeds will next play Monagesque-Polish team Hugo Nys and Jan Zielinski. This is the first time Krawietz and Mies have competed together in Kitzbühel.

In other doubles action at the Austrian ATP 250, home favourites Neil Oberleitner and Jurij Rodionov upset third seeds Sander Gille and Joran Vliegen 6-4, 3-6, 11-9. Other teams that advanced were Dutch-Austrian duo Robin Haase and Philipp Oswald, Frenchmen Sadio Doumbia and Fabien Reboul, and Dutchmen Tallon Griekspoor and Bart Stevens.

Second Seeds Survive Tough Test In Umag
Brazilian-Spanish pair Rafael Matos and David Vega Hernandez have captured three tour-level crowns together this year, but on Tuesday they nearly lost in the first round at the Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag. The second seeds found a way to win though, clawing past Frenchman Albano Olivetti and Brazilian Fernando Romboli 3-6, 6-3, 11-9 to reach the quarter-finals in Umag.

Rajeev Ram and Jack Sock competed together in an ATP Tour event for the first time on Monday. That did not stop them from producing a nearly flawless performance.

The Americans ousted Mexico’s Hans Hach Verdugo and India’s Ramkumar Ramanathan 6-3, 6-3 to advance to the Atlanta Open quarter-finals without facing a break point. The third seeds won 93 per cent of their first-serve points to triumph after 53 minutes.

Ram’s full-time doubles partner is Joe Salisbury, the current No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Doubles Rankings. If Ram and Sock win the Atlanta title, Ram will have the same number of ranking points as Salisbury on Monday. Since he will have played fewer tournaments to earn those points, Ram would become the new doubles World No. 1.

In other Atlanta doubles action, American wild cards Christopher Eubanks and Mackenzie McDonald clawed past Frenchmen Quentin Halys and Adrian Mannarino 6-7(3), 6-4, 10-8.

Top Seeds Advance In Kitzbühel
Top seeds Tim Puetz and Michael Venus eliminated home favourites Lukas Neumayer and Sebastian Ofner 6-2, 6-3 to reach the quarter-finals of the Generali Open in Kitzbühel.

Joining them in the last eight were Spanish-Italian team Pedro Martinez and Lorenzo Sonego as well as Monagesque-Polish duo Hugo Nys and Jan Zielinski.

Barrientos/Reyes-Varela Rally In Umag
In the only doubles match played Monday at the Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag, Colombian Nicolas Barrientos and Mexico’s Miguel Angel Reyes-Varela defeated Swede Andre Goransson and Japan’s Ben McLachlan 3-6, 6-2, 10-4.

One year ago, Brandon Nakashima reached his second ATP Tour final at the Atlanta Open. This edition, the #NextGenATP American will try to go one step further.

The 20-year-old made a good start on Monday when he battled past Australian Jordan Thompson 7-6(5), 3-6, 6-3 after two hours and 12 minutes. The eighth seed earned his first break of the match in the third set, and that was enough to move on at Atlantic Station.

Thompson is a familiar foe for Nakashima, as they have now played each other four times in the past 53 weeks, including twice in Atlanta. On this occasion, it was the American who advanced and took a 3-1 lead in their ATP Head2Head series. He will next play another Australian: John Millman or Alexei Popyrin.

Nakashima, who is trying to qualify for the Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals, began the week eighth in the Pepperstone ATP Race To Milan.

In other action, South Korean Soonwoo Kwon rallied past home favourite Marcos Giron 7-6(3), 4-6, 7-5. Giron led by a break in the third set, but was unable to complete the victory against Kwon, who earned his first ATP Tour title last year in Nur-Sultan. The 24-year-old will face fifth seed Tommy Paul or wild card Jack Sock for a place in the quarter-finals.

Another American lost on Monday when Japan’s Taro Daniel battled past Sebastian Korda 1-6, 6-1, 6-3. The qualifier struggled in the early baseline rallies with the powerful Korda.

However, the American hit seven double faults in the second set, which helped turn the match in Daniel’s favour. The 29-year-old will next play fourth seed Frances Tiafoe.