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Nadal Sweeps Past Delbonis, Fires Warning In Monte-Carlo

Rafael Nadal got off to a perfect start on Wednesday in Monte-Carlo, where he seeks a record-extending 12th trophy. The Spanish superstar looked in strong form in a comprehensive 6-1, 6-2 victory over Argentine qualifier Federico Delbonis over 81 minutes at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters.

In his first match since 17 February, when he fell to Stefanos Tsitsipas in the Australian Open quarter-finals, Nadal struck 16 winners to beat Delbonis. The 34-year-old Nadal is now 72-5 at the Monte-Carlo Country Club, where he won an Open-Era record eight successive titles from 2005 to 2012 and a further three straight crowns from 2016 to 2018.

“It was solid match,” said Nadal. “Of course, a very positive result. He’s a good player on clay… Nothing unbelievable, but nothing wrong. Just a solid match, a positive start. I think I did what I had to do today.”

Nadal will next play Monte-Carlo resident and No. 14 seed, Grigor Dimitrov, who saved six of seven break points in a 7-6(3), 6-4 victory over Jeremy Chardy of France in one hour and 42 minutes earlier on Wednesday afternoon. Nadal leads Dimitrov 13-1 in their ATP Head2Head series, including wins in their three matches at this clay-court tournament (2013, 2018-19).

“We’ve had some great matches,” said Nadal. “In Melbourne, of course… We played another great match in Beijing, another one in Shanghai. He’s a good friend, a good guy, and a great player. It’s going to be a tough test in my second round. It’s going to be his third. I need to be ready for it. I hope to be ready for it. I am just excited to play a tough match very early in the tournament.”

Graphic courtesy Hawk-Eye Innovations/ATP Media

Third seed Nadal, who is normally used to competing in front of a capacity 10,200 fans on Court Rainier III each year, started with a bang, breaking Delbonis in his first service game after a backhand error. The World No. 87 continued to come under pressure, forced deep behind the baseline in bruising baseline rallies. Consecutive double faults from Delbonis handed Nadal a 4-0 advantage. Nadal completed the 30-minute first set with a forehand.

There was no let-up from Nadal in the early stages of the second set. The Spaniard won 10 of 12 points en route to a 3-0 lead, but his dominance was halted in the next game. Delbonis broke serve on his fourth break point, when a Nadal backhand hit the net and bounced wide, and went on to recover to 2-3. As groundstroke errors continued to mount for Delbonis, Nadal broke for a fifth time at 4-2. He is now 5-0 lifetime against Delbonis in their ATP Head2Head series.

Delbonis, 30, had been seeking to record the biggest win of his career since overcoming then No. 2-ranked Andy Murray at the 2016 BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells. He is now 3-16 lifetime against Top 10 opponents.

Did You Know?
Nadal is 446-40 lifetime on clay-courts since turning professional in 2001. Only Argentina’s Guillermo Vilas (681) and Spain’s Manuel Orantes (569) have won more matches on red dirt in the Open Era (since 1968).

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Rublev Races Into Monte-Carlo Third Round

Andrey Rublev needed just 68 minutes to claim his first win of the European clay swing on Wednesday at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters.

The sixth seed ripped 11 forehand winners in his 6-3, 6-2 win against Italian qualifier Salvatore Caruso on Court Rainier III. Rublev is through to the third round in the Principality for the first time.

“I am happy with my game for the first match of the clay season,” said Rublev in his post-match interview. “I was a little bit tight because obviously I didn’t practise a lot on clay and I didn’t play matches before.

“Caruso was playing [from] qualifying, so he [had got] used to the clay already and on clay he is really dangerous. I am really happy that I could win in straight sets.”

Rublev’s win against Caruso extends his tour-leading wins total this year to 21 matches (21-4). Last year’s Roland Garros quarter-finalist is aiming to capture his maiden ATP Masters 1000 title this week.

MOST MATCH WINS IN 2021 ATP TOUR SEASON

The World No. 8 established control of the match from the first ball. Rublev used his forehand throughout the match to dictate play from the baseline and push Caruso into defensive positions. The eight-time ATP Tour titlist closed the match with a cross-court forehand winner.

Graphic courtesy Hawk-Eye Innovations/ATP Media

Rublev will meet ninth seed Roberto Bautista Agut or Tommy Paul for a place in the quarter-finals. The 23-year-old owns a 2-3 ATP Head2Head record against Bautista Agut, but he won the pair’s only previous encounter on clay in last year’s Hamburg European Open quarter-finals. Rublev is unbeaten in two matches against Paul.

Did You Know?
Two years ago, ranked No. 90 in the FedEx ATP Rankings, Rublev held a 6-4, 4-1 lead against eventual champion Fabio Fognini before falling in three sets.

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Pouille: 'I Doubted I Would Ever Play Normally Again'

Lucas Pouille has reached great heights in tennis — winning five ATP Tour titles, reaching the 2019 Australian Open semi-finals and climbing to No. 10 in the FedEx ATP Rankings among them. But now, an ordinary match win is an achievement for the Frenchman as he climbs back towards his best form.

The 27-year-old, who missed a year and a half due to a right elbow injury that required surgery, earned his first Top 100 victory since Tokyo in 2019 on Tuesday when he defeated World No. 48 Guido Pella 6-3, 6-4 at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters.

“It’s a good victory for me, for my state of mind and for my game and for my confidence,” Pouille said. “It’s only positive.”

In September 2019, Poille began struggling with his right elbow. That October, he stopped competing. Following tests, the Frenchman received injections and took all of his doctors’ advice, but there were always complications.

“After a while there was a doubt that I would ever be able to play again normally,” Pouille admitted.

The 6’1” righty played one ATP Challenger Tour event last March the week before play was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In July, he underwent surgery and did not compete the rest of the season.

“Of course, the doctor was very confident. For them it was just a small surgery. But on an elbow, for a tennis player, we know it’s always a bit difficult,” Pouille said. “It took a lot of time.”

This is Pouille’s seventh tournament of the year at all levels, and he is now 4-6 on the season. But he is practising patience and continuing to work hard, hoping the results will come.

“Of course, I see things differently. That long period off allowed me to think about what I had been doing all these years, what I wanted to do,” Pouille said. “After my loss in Marbella, I could have been down… it was another loss after a very tight match. I could have been discouraged. But I remained very positive. We remained positive in the team. We kept on working. We came here in a good state of mind.”

Perhaps the most important thing is that Pouille is healthy. He can fully focus on his tennis.

“Everything is fine with my elbow. I have no pain. I’m not afraid. I can serve normally. During more than a year, I was not able to serve 100 per cent, so that was a long time,” Pouille said. “This is the most difficult shot I have to adjust now. I have to find the rhythm, the whole movement, to be able to serve at my best level. This takes time, a lot of repetition. But now everything is fine. I have no pain at all. This is positive.”

The World No. 86 is simply happy to be competing. While all players missed more than five months because of the pandemic last year, it was an even longer stretch for Pouille because of his injury.

“I spent a year and a half without touching a racquet on the Tour. I missed a lot playing tennis. I’m happy now the Tour is going on,” Pouille said. “We are able to play. I enjoy it. I’m happy the tournament is on and I can do my job and I can wake up every morning to do what I like to do and what I worked hard for.”

Pouille will play Australian qualifier Alexei Popyrin for a spot in the third round against Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, who upset eighth seed Matteo Berrettini on Tuesday. The Frenchman is not thinking too far ahead, though.

“I’m just wanting to win match after match, trying to implement what I’ve been working on during practice and build up my confidence. This kind of match helps,” Pouille said of his win against Pella. “Now I have to do the same tomorrow and keep going.”

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Wednesday Preview: Nadal, Djokovic Making Moves In Monte-Carlo

No one has won more ATP Masters 1000 titles at a single event then Rafael Nadal at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, and the third seed will hit the court to begin his quest for a record-extending 12th trophy on Wednesday.

The former World No. 1 will take on Argentine qualifier Federico Delbonis in the third match on Court Rainier III, a stadium that has seen Nadal take a bite out of 11 trophies and rack up a 71-5 record in the Principality. He will bring a 4-0 ATP Head2Head lead into his second-round clash with Delbonis.

Nadal will be competing for the first time since his run to the Australian Open quarter-finals (l. Tsitsipas).

“I [took] a while after Australia. [It’s] going to be my second tournament [of the year],” Nadal said in a pre-tournament press conference. “[We] arrive at an important part of the season for me. I think I did the right work to be ready.

“It’s true that I didn’t play much,” he added. “At the same time, [it] is true that I had good success in the past without playing [many] matches. My mindset is the same as always.”

Two-time former champion and Monte-Carlo resident Novak Djokovic will take on #NextGenATP Italian Jannik Sinner for the first time in tour-level competition in one of the most anticipated second-round battles of the day.

The World No. 1 is contesting his first event since claiming a record-extending ninth Australian Open title. He’ll have to hit the ground running against the red-hot 19-year-old, who arrived in Monte-Carlo after reaching his first ATP Masters 1000 final in Miami.

“He’s [a] very, very nice person. He’s working really hard. He’s devoted. He’s got all the goods that he needs in order to become a champion,” Djokovic said of Sinner in a pre-event press conference. “He’s in a right way and he’s surrounded [by] very good people… [His coach] Riccardo [Piatti] was my coach the first years of my professional career. He’s in good hands.

“We [have] never faced each other in an official match, so it would be definitely great to play him on clay, and let’s see what happens,” he added.

Fifth seed Alexander Zverev and sixth seed Andrey Rublev will also be making their start at the year’s first clay-court Masters 1000 event, and they’re both set to face Italian opposition in the second round. Acapulco champion Zverev will take on Lorenzo Sonego, while Rublev begins his Monte-Carlo campaign against qualifier Salvatore Caruso.

Elsewhere, seventh seed Diego Schwartzman and defending champion Fabio Fognini will be holding court at the Monte-Carlo Country Club. They are contesting back-to-back singles matches on Court des Princes, with 15th seed Fognini taking on Jordan Thompson and the Argentine facing off against Casper Ruud. Later in the day, Schwartzman and Fognini will reunite for doubles as they face sixth seeds Wesley Koolhof and Lukasz Kubot in the second round.

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SCHEDULE – WEDNESDAY, APRIL 14, 2021
COURT RAINIER III start 11:00 am
[6] A. Rublev (RUS) vs [Q] S. Caruso (ITA)
[1] N. Djokovic (SRB) vs J. Sinner (ITA)
[Q] F. Delbonis (ARG) vs [3] R. Nadal (ESP)
L. Sonego (ITA) vs [5] A. Zverev (GER)

COURT DES PRINCES start 11:00 am
[15] F. Fognini (ITA) vs J. Thompson (AUS)
[7] D. Schwartzman (ARG) vs C. Ruud (NOR)
D. Evans (GBR) vs [13] H. Hurkacz (POL)
After Suitable Rest – F. Fognini (ITA) / D. Schwartzman (ARG) vs [6] W. Koolhof (NED) / L. Kubot (POL)

COURT 2 start 11:00 am
[14] G. Dimitrov (BUL) vs J. Chardy (FRA)
[11] D. Goffin (BEL) vs [Q] M. Cecchinato (ITA)
T. Paul (USA) vs [9] R. Bautista Agut (ESP)
After Suitable Rest – K. Khachanov (RUS) / A. Rublev (RUS) vs [4] M. Granollers (ESP) / H. Zeballos (ARG)

COURT 9 start 11:00 am
J. Millman (AUS) vs [16] C. Garin (CHI)
[Q] A. Popyrin (AUS) vs [WC] L. Pouille (FRA)
K. Khachanov (RUS) vs [12] P. Carreno Busta (ESP)
[7] P. Herbert (FRA) / N. Mahut (FRA) vs H. Kontinen (FIN) / E. Roger-Vasselin (FRA)

COURT 11 start 1:00 pm
Second Round – F. Krajinovic (SRB) vs [LL] J. Londero (ARG)

Not Before 2:00 pm
Second Round – [8] K. Krawietz (GER) / H. Tecau (ROU) or [WC] P. Tsitsipas (GRE) / S. Tsitsipas (GRE) vs C. Garin (CHI) / G. Pella (ARG)
First Round – [Alt] A. Behar (URU) / G. Escobar (ECU) vs G. Dimitrov (BUL) / D. Goffin (BEL)
Second Round – R. Klaasen (RSA) / B. McLachlan (JPN) vs [5] R. Ram (USA) / J. Salisbury (GBR)

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Win Or Learn: Sinner Looking Forward To 'Good Test' Against Djokovic

Novak Djokovic spoke highly of #NextGenATP sensation Jannik Sinner during his pre-tournament press conference, saying the Italian has “got all the goods that he needs in order to become a champion”. On Tuesday, the Italian will get the chance to prove it against the World No. 1.

Sinner has passed many tests with flying colours during his young career. But his second-round clash against Djokovic at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters will be one of his toughest tasks yet. The tournament debutant will try to stun the 36-time ATP Masters 1000 champion, and he’s excited for the opportunity.

“I will definitely have a game plan,” Sinner said. “I know who is on the other side. Obviously it’s a tough match I think from my side, because I don’t know him that well. [I have] seen him a lot on TV, watching matches. But when you play against [him] in a match, it’s different. I’m looking forward to that match.

“It’s a good test for my side to see where I am, especially where I can improve. I know where I can improve, but this kind of match can give me a lot. I just try to go there with the right mentality like in every match.”

Although this is their first ATP Head2Head clash, Sinner is not unfamiliar with Djokovic. They have trained together several times. The Italian’s coach, Riccardo Piatti, worked with the Serbian early in his career, and the teen even remembers the first time he practised with Djokovic.

“I remember we were here in Monaco, Monte-Carlo. I practised with him… I was definitely younger. We were playing in two [on ones] because I was a small kid,” Sinner said. “We only hit for one and a half hours, classic practice.”

Perhaps it’s fitting that they will now meet on the ATP Tour at the same venue: the Monte-Carlo Country Club. Djokovic has watched Sinner blossom in front of his eyes, and now he will try to hold him off with the rising star at a career-high No. 22 in the FedEx ATP Rankings.

“In that period of two, three years, when he was a junior coming up, we trained a lot actually in Piatti’s academy, here in Monaco, both [on] hard courts, clay courts,” Djokovic said. “I have seen his development, so to say, his trajectory, his road to where he is at the moment. It’s really impressive.”

Djokovic has not competed since winning his ninth Australian Open title in February. Sinner, fresh off making his first Masters 1000 final in Miami, doesn’t believe that gives him an edge, though.

“I think he has more experience than me, obviously. I don’t think that’s an advantage or not,” Sinner said. “I played today one match, which can give me a little bit [of] the feeling back on clay. I’m looking forward to a great battle, trying to play my tennis… then we will see what happens.”

The top-seeded Djokovic, who is pursuing a third title at this tournament, is certainly not taking the challenge lightly. The 33-year-old has watched Sinner quickly ascend, and the Italian can continue that climb with one of his biggest victories yet.

“Obviously there are a lot of the achievements that I’m sure he wants to achieve in his career as he’s pointing out. He’s very ambitious,” Djokovic said. “Playing [in the] final of Miami was obviously the highlight of his career so far. But I think he has been very consistent player, actually. He’s always playing [in] at least [the] quarters or semis of the 250s or 500s. He has been very impressive.

“It seems like he’s not satisfied with what he has achieved so far. He wants to do more, which is great to see there’s the hunger in him. We never faced each other in official match, so it would be definitely great to play him on clay, and let’s see what happens.”

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How Davidovich Fokina Found ‘Mental Calm’ In Berrettini Upset

Alejandro Davidovich Fokina scored the biggest victory of his career on Tuesday at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters as he closed out eighth seed Matteo Berrettini 7-5, 6-3 to reach the third round.

Not only was it the 21-year-old Spaniard’s first victory at an ATP Masters 1000 clay-court event, it was Davidovich Fokina’s first win against a Top 10 player.

It was a long-awaited milestone for Davidovich Fokina, who went 0-4 last year in clashes with Diego Schwartzman and Alexander Zverev. The signs were already there, as Davidovich Fokina pushed both players to deciding sets in two of their contests.

“I’m very happy with this win. I’m very excited to defeat a Top 10 player,” Davidovich Fokina said in his post-match press conference. “Last year I faced a couple of Top 10 players and I came close, but I couldn’t close them out. But here I am improving every day, I’m playing better and better.

“I also knew that Matteo was coming back from an injury and he wouldn’t have a lot of rhythm. I was able to take advantage of that today.” 

Davidovich Fokina put in a measured and consistent performance to defeat the World No. 10. He claimed 73 per cent of points behind his strong first serve, and broke the Italian three times. Berrettini showed flashes of his best tennis, working his way back after a rib injury forced him to withdraw from the fourth round of the Australian Open. 

The Spaniard knew he had a big opportunity to pull off the upset with Berrettini contesting his first match since Melbourne. He was prepared to take his chances, something Davidovich Fokina admitted he has been working on. 

The No. 58-ranked player revealed that a change in mentality has helped him find the winning momentum that’s propelled him up the FedEx ATP Rankings. He has posted an 11-6 record after the Tour resumed in August 2020, including his first ATP Tour semi-final at Cologne (l. Zverev). 

“Before, I used to be a much more hyperactive and anxious person,” he admitted. “I wanted to finish every point in three shots, but when you evolve as a player you realise that tennis is not about winning in three shots. It’s about staying mentally calm and feeling stable. 

“You have to take advantage of your opportunities, but also acknowledge that there may be more opportunities to come if you can’t.” 

Davidovich Fokina will hope to continue capitalising on his chances as he awaits the winner of Lucas Pouille and Alexei Popyrin for a shot at his first ATP Masters 1000 quarter-final.

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Herbert/Mahut Advance, Tsitsipas Brothers Save 2 M.P.

Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut made a winning start to their Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters title bid on Tuesday with a 6-4, 6-4 win against Simone Bolelli and Jannik Sinner.

The 2016 champions won 90 per cent of their first-serve points (28/31) to move past their Italian rivals in 75 minutes. Herbert and Mahut are attempting to capture their first title of the season in Monte-Carlo. The Frenchmen own a 7-3 team record in 2021.

In a match played across two days due to rain, Petros Tsitsipas and Stefanos Tsitsipas saved two match points to eliminate eighth seeds Kevin Krawietz and Horia Tecau 7-6(4), 3-6, 11-9. Play resumed on Tuesday with the Tsitsipas brothers holding a 6-3 lead and, after dropping the second set, the Greeks were forced to save two match points from 7/9 in the match Tie-break to reach the next round.

Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury recovered from a set down to beat Marcelo Melo and Jean-Julien Rojer 4-6, 6-1, 10-8. The fifth seeds will next face Raven Klaasen and Ben McLachlan, who held their nerves to beat Alex de Minaur and John Peers 7-6(3), 3-6, 11-9.

Sixth seeds Wesley Koolhof and Lukasz Kubot also claimed their spot in the second round with a 7-6(2), 6-3 win against Adrian Mannarino and Benoit Paire.

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Tsitsipas Contains Karatsev In Monte-Carlo

Fourth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas aced a tricky opening test at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Aslan Karatsev on Tuesday.

One break of serve in each set made the difference for the Greek  on Court Rainier III as he faced the Dubai titlist for the first time. Tsitsipas fired nine winners over an hour and 24 minutes as he claimed the first spot into the third round.

“I knew I had to face a difficult opponent today,” Tsitsipas said in his post-match interview. “Aslan has [had some] great results this year… I managed to push him back and attack with my forehand. Things worked out pretty well for me. 

“My clay court experience helps a lot to come back each year stronger, knowing that I have done better before. It was a very beautiful game out there and I enjoyed it.”

With the victory, the Greek improved to 18-5 on the season, having reached the quarter-finals or better at all five of his previous tournaments including a run to the championship match in Acapulco. Tsitsipas advanced to the third round in Monte Carlo for the second edition in a row, equalling his best result at the clay-court ATP Masters 1000 event.

“I’m putting [in] hours on the court, trying to become consistent [and] get close to the legends of our sport,” said Tsitsipas. “I am working every single day. I am very far from that, but it is definitely a dream of mine that I want to achieve one day.”

Also in action, Norwegian Casper Ruud won a Scandinavian showdown against Danish wild card Holger Vitus Nodskov Rune 6-2, 6-1, en route to the third round. Ruud will face seventh seed Diego Schwartzman next. Schwartzman leads their ATP Head2Head record 4-0.

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Monte Carlo Masters: Dan Evans seals first tour-level victory on clay in four years

Dan Evans seals his first tour-level victory on clay in four years with a first-round win over Dusan Lajovic at the Monte Carlo Masters.

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New Day, New Outcome For Garin Against Auger-Aliassime

Cristian Garin trailed Felix Auger-Aliassime 2-4 when the pair’s first-round match was suspended due to rain on Monday at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters. When the Chilean returned to the court on Tuesday, he raised his game to march into the second round.

The five-time ATP Tour clay-court titlist claimed 11 of the 14 games played on Tuesday and capitalised on 28 forehand unforced errors from Auger-Aliassime to record a 7-6(3), 6-1 win. Garin improved his record on clay this season to 5-1, highlighted by his title run at home at the Chile Dove Men+Care Open in Santiago.

“The conditions were pretty different [from] yesterday,” Garin said in his post-match interview. “Yesterday, the court was pretty humid and today it was faster. I love these conditions. It is my favourite surface… These matches help me a lot to keep looking at the things I have to improve. I am very happy to be playing here in Monte-Carlo.”

The World No. 24 has regained the lead in his ATP Head2Head series against the #NextGenATP Canadian. Garin has won two of his three matches against Auger-Aliassime, with all three encounters contested on clay.

“I didn’t expect to play Felix in the first round. He is a great player with a really great future, so I am very happy with the way I played today,” Garin said. “I hope to keep improving. Most of the tournaments that I played this year were on clay, so I had more rhythm.”

Auger-Aliassime was making his first appearance under the guidance of new coaching team member Toni Nadal this week. The Canadian approached the Spaniard towards the end of 2020 and spent more than a week preparing for the 2021 ATP Tour season at the Rafa Nadal Academy by Movistar in Mallorca. Auger-Aliassime opened the year with a run to the Murray River Open final (l. to Evans).

Garin will meet John Millman for a spot in the third round. The Aussie defeated Ugo Humbert 6-3, 6-3 to start his Monte-Carlo campaign on Monday.

“[Millman] is a very solid player,” Garin said. “I saw his match yesterday [and] he played really well. He is a dangerous player. Every player here plays amazing.”

Singapore champion Alexei Popyrin recovered from a slow start to beat Pablo Andujar 0-6, 6-2, 7-6(3). The 21-year-old qualifier won 79 per cent of his first-serve points in the decider (15/19) to improve to 12-4 on the season.

Popyrin will meet French wild card Lucas Pouille in the second round. The former Top 10 star defeated Guido Pella 6-3, 6-4 to earn his second tour-level win of the year.

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