Who doesn’t love smashing away an overhead? It’s not as easy as the ATP Tour’s stars make it look.

“The shot doesn’t really pop up too much in doubles,” said Raven Klaasen, who has competed in the past four Nitto ATP Finals. “But it combines your ability to cover the court with your ability to finish the ball.”

There was no consensus among the world’s best in picking the player with the best overhead, but what was clear is that there is more to the shot than being tall and powerful. Klaasen, who stands 5’10”, was the only player to receive multiple votes. In the newest installment of ATPTour.com’s ‘Ultimate Doubles Player’ series, read below for the players’ picks and explanations.

Raven Klaasen
“Just because of his athleticism. He’s got a good smash, but maybe it’s because he’s so tough to lob. He gets back to everything, so including the movement back to it he’s got the best smash.” – Joe Salisbury

“Raven Klaasen is a very athletic guy, gets back well for overheads. Most guys don’t miss smashes, but there’s a big difference between making a smash and getting back and still being able to give it a good smack and hit it for a winner or really force an opponent to hit a [poor] reply, and then you put the next one away.” – Jamie Murray

“He is one who is very athletic. He’s not very tall, but very difficult to lob because he’s so athletic. He gets back so quick and he’s able to get a bit of pop on the old smash.” – Neal Skupski

Ivan Dodig
“He has the best overhead in the game because he’s very athletic, moves very well backwards and it’s very hard to lob him.” – Jurgen Melzer

Robert Lindstedt
“Robby always said he has the best overhead in doubles and I think I have to agree. I never saw him miss one. I’ll give him the credit. He’s going to be happy.” – Marcelo Melo

Robert Lindstedt” />

Marcelo Melo
“He’s ‘The Giraffe’, people call him. He’s very difficult to lob. When he’s at the net, the best chance is to go through him rather than over him.” – Neal Skupski

Filip Polasek
“He was off the Tour for a little while and since he’s come back he’s flown up the [FedEx ATP Doubles] Rankings. He’s doing unbelievably well. He’s an absolute unit of a man, so first of all, to try and get the ball over him is a difficult job. But he has pure, brute power, a strong arm and I would really hope my partner would not choose to lob him if I was ever at the net because I would not want to be facing one of his smashes.” – Ken Skupski

Jean-Julien Rojer
“He doesn’t look big, but he’s really quick and it’s hard for me to recognise when we get it over him. He sees the ball, he reads the game. He always gets it and once he’s there, he’s not missing much.” – Filip Polasek

Joe Salisbury
“Partially because I don’t hit many of them, so he’s got to cover the whole court. He’s able to take balls from deep, short, angles and put them away. He can do amazing things with the overhead. He’s a great athlete.” – Rajeev Ram

“Someone like Joe Salisbury, he’s a very athletic tennis player. Very good at getting back to smashes, good around the net.” – Neal Skupski

Joe Salisbury” />

Bruno Soares
“Bruno has an amazing overhead, I think. He doesn’t really miss, but it’s also his ability to actually hit winners off the smash, which isn’t always that easy to do. Very impressed with him in the time that we played together. I always thought he had an amazing smash.” – Jamie Murray 

Horia Tecau
“He’s very good with anything over his head. He’s got really good timing with both his serve and overhead. I think he’s got very good hand-eye coordination when it comes to anything over head. If you look at his serve, it’s nothing very explosive, it’s just well-timed and he gets effortless power into everything he does up there. The whole motion is actually perfect, I would say. Maybe there could be some more action angle-wise on his overheads, but when he’s there it’s a very clean shot and tough to defend.” – Robert Lindstedt

Andy Murray found good form to battle past 2018 Nitto ATP Finals champion Alexander Zverev on Monday in three sets to reach the third round of the Western & Southern Open. But did the former World No. 1 expect to find such a level in the first tournament since the ATP Tour was suspended due to COVID-19?

“If you watched my practice sets and stuff and the build-up to the tournament, you would have said, ‘No’. I was getting belted by everyone. That had also been the case when I had been playing practice matches and practice sets back home. Couldn’t win one,” Murray said, cracking a smile. “But practice doesn’t really matter. It’s what obviously you do on the match court.”

Murray doesn’t shy away from showing his frustration when he makes mistakes on court, like when the 33-year-old let slip a break advantage in the third said against Zverev. But the wild card said that doesn’t reflect his self-belief during those tough moments.

“Sometimes I think outwardly if you looked at me, if you’re watching me on the court and you’re watching from the stands, you might think that I get really down on myself and that I’m very negative,” Murray said. “Outwardly I definitely am. But I think inside me I have a very, very strong self-belief and know that I can win matches like that. Although it doesn’t always appear that way when you’re watching me on the court, I always believe, even when outwardly it seems like I might be flagging or being negative.”

It’s still only a year and a half since Murray underwent his second hip surgery. He was able to hang in there physically with 23-year-old Zverev to pull out the two-hour, 31-minute battle.

“I was moving pretty well at the end of the match. Definitely had some lulls in there, like drop-offs in intensity, a bit of energy at times. It was ridiculously hot at the beginning of the match, unbelievably hot and humid,” Murray said. “I think I would have gotten through a five-setter… it would have been tough, for sure.”

This will also serve as a confidence-builder for Murray. Instead of walking off the court disappointed following a tough loss, he departed Grandstand after proving to himself that physically and mentally he could compete against the No. 7 player in the FedEx ATP Rankings.

“Obviously it was a big one to get through,” Murray said. “If I had lost the match from being 4-1 up in the third, having opportunities and the way that I played to go down from 4-1 to 4-5 was obviously not very good. Made some bad mistakes. Stopped moving my feet. Probably a bit of nerves in there, a bit of fatigue. Just a bit of rustiness, as well, I think from not playing and having to close matches out against top players for a long time.

“It would have been a tough one to lose. I was satisfied obviously to get through it, get a win against a top player after having not played for such a long time.”

Zverev was also impressed with Murray’s level. It was the pair’s first ATP Head2Head meeting since the 2016 Australian Open, when the German was only 18.

“It’s pretty good,” Zverev said of Murray’s level. “I was very surprised at how well he’s moving. He’s moving quite fine, quite normally.

“It was a scratchy match. I think after six months off, it’s not easy. And he played a three-setter [in the first round], which I think helped him a little bit. Credit to him. He fought to the end and he deserves to win.”

Andy Murray and Milos Raonic contested six ATP Head2Head matches in 2016, including finals at Wimbledon and The Queen’s Club, but since then, their rivalry has been on hold.

That will change on Tuesday at the Western & Southern Open when the pair meet for the 13th time (Murray leads 9-3) with a spot in the quarter-finals on the line. Murray will be aiming to make it nine victories in a row against the Canadian, who claimed each of his three wins in the first four matches of the rivalry.

Murray has impressed with his movement and stamina in his opening two matches of the year. The former World No. 1 has survived back-to-back three set matches against Frances Tiafoe and Alexander Zverev. Raonic’s route to the third round has been far more straightforward, with no sets dropped and 42 aces struck across victories against Sam Querrey and Daniel Evans.

“I have played him a lot. [He has a] huge serve. I saw a bit of the match today against Dan Evans. He is serving well, playing aggressive, which is when he plays his best,” said Murray.

“We have played each other in some big matches. We played at the US Open, Cincinnati, Wimbledon final, the Australian Open. He has had his injury struggles as well, so it is nice to see him back.”

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic will attempt to take his unbeaten start to the year to 20 matches when he faces Tennys Sandgren. The 2018 champion leads Sandgren 2-0 in their ATP Head2Head series, which includes a four-set victory at the US Open in 2018.

Australian Open quarter-finalist Sandgren will be hoping to add to his 3-2 record against Top 20 opposition this year. The wild card beat Felix Auger-Aliassime in a final-set tie-break to reach the third round at an ATP Masters 1000 event for the first time on Monday.

“That is why you do the training, that is why you put yourself out there, to test yourself,” said Sandgren. “It is a blessing to be able to play against someone who is going to be one of the all-time greats.”

Defending champion Daniil Medvedev and last year’s runner-up David Goffin will return to action. Medvedev will continue his title defence against Aljaz Bedene in the opening match on Grandstand, while Goffin will meet Jan-Lennard Struff for a place in the last eight.

Matteo Berrettini and Stefanos Tsitsipas will face American opposition in back-to-back matches on Court 10. Sixth seed Berrettini meets Delray Beach Open by VITACOST.com champion Reilly Opelka, before Tsitsipas battles 2013 runner-up John Isner.

ORDER OF PLAY – TUESDAY, AUGUST 25, 2020
GRANDSTAND start 11:00 am
[3] Daniil Medvedev vs [Q] Aljaz Bedene
WTA Match

Not Before 3:30 pm
[1] Novak Djokovic vs [WC] Tennys Sandgren
[WC] Andy Murray vs Milos Raonic

Not Before 7:00 pm
WTA Match

COURT 17 start 11:00 am
WTA Match
[11] Karen Khachanov vs [8] Roberto Bautista Agut

Not Before 3:00 pm
WTA Match
WTA Match

Not Before 7:00 pm
[Q] Marton Fucsovics vs Filip Krajinovic

COURT 10 start 11:00 am
Jan-Lennard Struff vs [7] David Goffin
WTA Match
[6] Matteo Berrettini vs Reilly Opelka
[16] John Isner vs [4] Stefanos Tsitsipas

Click here to view the full Day 4 schedule.

Matteo Berrettini was on the verge of a routine win against #NextGenATP Finn Emil Ruusuvuori in the second round of the Western & Southern Open. But instead, he needed to battle for two hours and 41 minutes on Monday evening to eliminate the 21-year-old qualifier 6-4, 6-7(3), 7-5.

“It was really tough because I thought the match was over,” Berrettini said. “I hit an ace, and I didn’t even hear the let on match point. I was telling myself, ‘You know this sport, it’s like that. A few balls and everything can change.'”

The sixth seed was centimetres away from closing out Ruusuvuori at 6-4, 5-4 ,40/30. The Italian crushed what appeared to be an ace out wide, but it was a let. The Finn, who won his first ATP Masters 1000 main draw match in the opening round against American qualifier Sebastian Korda, significantly raised his level from there, showing his promise.

“I have to say since that moment Emil started to play better and better and he started to serve really good. I was struggling on my return games,” Berrettini said. “Then it was a fight. I think I was really good mentally to be there after all the chances that I had, especially in the first two sets and also after 5-4, all those match points. I’m really happy with my mental performance.”

Berrettini was unable to convert four more match points with Ruusuvuori serving at 4-5 in the decider. But in his next return game, he broke for the third time to seal the match. Berrettini will next play big-serving American Reilly Opelka, who upset ninth seed Diego Schwartzman 6-3, 7-6(4) earlier in the day.

Seven months ago, Tennys Sandgren suffered a heartbreaking defeat. The American let slip seven match points against 20-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer in the quarter-finals of the Australian Open. When he returned to the locker room, Sandgren stared at the carpet, later saying that in that moment he was “just holding on like on a raft in the middle of the ocean”.

The 2019 Auckland champion was certainly disappointed. However, the loss didn’t discourage him in the long term. Sandgren still cherishes opportunities to compete against the legends of the sport. In the third round of the Western & Southern Open, he will play World No. 1 Novak Djokovic, whom he was one point from facing in the Australian Open semi-finals.

“I was [upset] in Australia that I didn’t get to play [him] in the semis,” Sandgren said. “I was looking forward to potentially that happening once I made it to the point where that could be a thing.”

Sandgren was down a break in the third set against #NextGenATP star Felix Auger-Aliassime on Monday, but he rallied to beat the Canadian 6-7(4), 6-2, 7-6(5) in two hours and 50 minutes.

“Today, it crossed my mind a couple of times when the match wasn’t going my way or I was down. I was thinking, ‘Dude, you are going to be [annoyed at] yourself again if you don’t find a way to pull this one out, because you are going to get another opportunity to play one of the best ever,’” Sandgren said. “Any time that is on the table, I think it is enjoyable because that is why you do the training. That is why you put yourself out there, to test yourself. It is a blessing to be able to play against someone who is going to be one of the all-time greats.”

Sandgren has previously played Djokovic twice, at Wimbledon and the US Open in 2018. The Serbian has won six of their seven sets by a margin of 6-3 or greater, but that doesn’t mean the American doesn’t enjoy the challenge. When he found out he would play Djokovic on Arthur Ashe Stadium two years ago, he called it “a bucket list thing”.

The World No. 55 didn’t always have such opportunities. For years, Sandgren toiled at Futures events and then on the ATP Challenger Tour, seeking a breakthrough. He earned his first tour-level win just after his 26th birthday. Could that give him an advantage playing someone like Djokovic without any fans in the crowd due to COVID-19?

“We are used to playing with nobody and we are used to not having that outside stimuli of people watching you, that extra pressure of eyes on you, which is very tangible,” Sandgren said. “At the same time, those guys are also magicians at getting themselves mentally up and prepared for matches. While I think it might be easier for someone like me, someone like Novak is extremely gifted at playing mental games with himself. I don’t think he is really going to have a problem getting up for these matches.

“Once he has committed to come and play, I think he is going to be fully in it. When you are able to hear somebody’s name and then change it to your own name in a match, I think you are probably pretty gifted at the mental side of the sport.”

Novak Djokovic didn’t have the luxury of easing back into tournament play at the Western & Southern Open Monday night in his first match back since the end of the ATP Tour suspension.

Lithuania’s former junior World No. 1 Ricardas Berankis came out swinging for the fences and grabbed the first break in each set. But Djokovic claimed ‘boomerang breaks’ in both sets and eventually triumphed 7-6(2), 6-4 to improve his perfect record in 2020 to 19-0.

The 33-year-old needed to call on his stunning tie-break record to claim the first set. He has now won 18 of his past 19 tie-breaks, dating back to his three tie-break victories in his epic five-set win over Roger Federer in the 2019 Wimbledon final.

Djokovic, who withdrew before his first-round doubles match with a neck problem, put on a mask at the end of the first set while undergoing an adjustment from ATP physio Clay Sniteman. He also reached for his head in the fifth game of the second set after landing awkwardly.

Novak Djokovic receives a neck adjustment after the first set.” />

Asked in his post-match press conference via Zoom, Djokovic said of his neck: “It’s getting better. It’s been four days. It’s not yet where I’d like it to be but it’s heading in the right direction.

“Hopefully it will not react with the inflammation after tonight’s match. We’ll do everything possible with the physio and then we’ll see what tomorrow brings.”

Djokovic, who hit seven double faults, added that his neck had an impact on his performance, especially on serve. “Well, it has bothered me… I made so many double faults, and he knew exactly where I’m going to serve. There were not many options for me because just the awkward situation I was in.

”But I managed somehow with the great help of Clay, ATP physiotherapist, who did his best to make sure I feel better. I tried to take one game at a time. He was striking the ball really well. He was playing super fast.”

The Serb, who became the first singles player in history (since 1990) to capture all nine ATP Masters 1000 titles when he defeated Federer in the 2018 Cincinnati final,
advanced to a third-round showdown with American Tennys Sandgren.

Serbian Filip Krajinovic stunned second seed Dominic Thiem 6-2, 6-1 on Monday, losing only two service points en route to the third round of the Western & Southern Open.

“I think I started really well today. I was aggressive and I’m really happy that I’m in the third round,” Krajinovic said on court. “I don’t think Thiem was playing today good tennis, but I took the chance and I think I deserved to win.”

Thiem was one of the leading favourites entering the tournament, especially after reaching this year’s Australian Open final, in which he pushed Novak Djokovic to five sets. But in his first ATP Tour match since play was suspended in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Thiem struggled to find rhythm against his unseeded opponent. 

“I knew what I had to do. I had a good preparation with my coach. I knew that I have to play aggressive if I’d have any chance,” Krajinovic said. “I think everything went my way today.”

Krajinovic earned just the second Top 10 victory of his career, improving to 2-16 against the elite group. He won 32 of 34 service points, breaking the World No. 3 four times. Entering the tournament, the World No. 32 had only won 61 per cent of his service points for the season. 

Thiem is known for his aggression and his physical baseline game. But the Austrian rushed the net on many occasions, and pulled the trigger earlier in rallies than he normally would. Krajinovic broke in his first return game of the second set, putting a backhand return at the feet of Thiem, who was serve-and-volleying. Krajinovic never lost focus, remaining solid throughout. He served out the match at love, clinching his 62-minute triumph when Thiem wildly missed a backhand down the line.

Krajinovic will next play 14th seed Grigor Dimitrov or Hungarian Marton Fucsovics.

Lukasz Kubot and Marcelo Melo made a winning start to their Western & Southern Open campaign on Monday, defeating Mate Pavic and Bruno Soares 7-6(4), 3-6, 10-5.

The 2017 semi-finalists improved to 6-3 as a team at the ATP Masters 1000 event after one hour and 44 minutes to book a second-round clash against Steve Johnson and Austin Krajicek. The American pairing dropped just two games to defeat Sander Gille and Joran Vliegen on Sunday.

“We are very happy, first of all, to be playing again in competition,” said Kubot. “We are happy after this long period… to continue playing good. I think today was a very good match, a very tough match against Bruno and Pavic who we have played a couple of times. To be back after five months playing this level makes us very happy.”

Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies needed 72 minutes to join Kubot and Melo in the second round. The reigning Roland Garros champions converted five of nine break points to beat Borna Coric and Franko Skugor 6-2, 6-3.

Wesley Koolhof and Nikola Mektic are through to their fourth quarter-final as a team this year. The Open 13 Provence finalists held each of their 10 service games to beat Daniel Evans and David Goffin 7-5, 6-1.