Breakwell out to inspire on courts of Roland Garros
Wheelchair tennis player Abbie Breakwell achieves her “impossible dream” of reaching the Paralympic Games in Paris.
Wheelchair tennis player Abbie Breakwell achieves her “impossible dream” of reaching the Paralympic Games in Paris.
The ATP and WTA, in collaboration with NACON and Big Ant Studios, are thrilled to announce the official release of TIEBREAK: The Official Game of the ATP and WTA. Available now on multiple platforms, TIEBREAK offers tennis fans an unparalleled gaming experience, featuring over 120 of the world’s greatest players and 90 official tournaments.
TIEBREAK brings the world of professional tennis to life with realistic gameplay based on real-world analytics. Players can compete in various game modes, including Career mode, where they can set out to conquer the PIF ATP and WTA Rankings at tournaments including ATP Masters 1000 and WTA 1000 events, the Nitto ATP Finals and the WTA Finals Riyadh.
TIEBREAK features more than 120 current and former stars, playable with their distinctive styles, including Carlos Alcaraz, Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Coco Gauff, Rafael Nadal, Jasmine Paolini, Aryna Sabalenka, Maria Sharapova, Jannik Sinner, Iga Swiatek and many more. Additionally, the unique Novak Djokovic Slam Challenge mode lets fans relive some of the most memorable moments from the legendary player’s career.
View Trailer:
Daniele Sanò, Chief Business Officer, ATP, said: “TIEBREAK offers tennis and gaming fans a thrilling way to experience the ATP Tour and Hologic WTA Tour. This collaboration also marks an important milestone in our shared storytelling – and mission to create compelling unified experiences for our global community. We’re proud to continue that journey of digital innovation together, with this captivating game now in the hands of our fans.”
Marina Storti, Chief Executive of WTA Ventures, said: “We are delighted to be collaborating with the ATP and NACON to bring fans an exciting new way to experience the thrills of top-class tennis. TIEBREAK will allow gamers to step into the shoes of their favorite tennis players, past and present, and take on the challenge of rising up the PIF WTA and ATP rankings. This is a great example of how the WTA and ATP are working together to find new ways to engage fans, build the profile of our talented players and grow the popularity of the sport.”
[ATP APP]TIEBREAK is available now in both standard and deluxe Ace Edition formats on PlayStation®5, PlayStation®4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One and PC (Steam). The Nintendo Switch™ version will be available at a later date.
For more information, please visit https://nacon.me/Tiebreak.
[NEWSLETTER FORM]In tennis, the closing bell is when the chair umpire calls, “Game, set and match”. Hubert Hurkacz and Ons Jabeur participated in a different version of it Wednesday in Manhattan.
The ATP and WTA star visited the Nasdaq MarketSite in Times Square to ring the Closing Bell alongside USTA Chairman of the Board and President Dr. Brian Hainline and USTA CEO Lew Sherr.
“It was so cool. Didn’t know what to expect coming here. That was just so much fun,” Hurkacz told ATPTour.com. “Obviously Nasdaq is so big. To take part in such an event that is really well known around the world is special. To see your face in Times Square is a little bit surreal.”
<img src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/08/22/03/49/hurkacz-nasdaq-2024-times-square.jpg” style=”width:100%;” alt=”Hubert Hurkacz ” />
Hurkacz and Jabeur spoke to Nasdaq representatives, conducted social media interviews and did a dress rehearsal for the Closing Bell before the real thing. As they performed the task at 4 p.m. local time, people from around the world watched on television and streams.
“It was super fun being here today to ring the closing bell at Nasdaq,” Jabeur said. “It was a fun experience, I’d never done that before. There is always fun stuff to do [for] the first time. It was very nice to start the week in New York here.”
Hurkacz, the No. 7 player in the PIF ATP Rankings, is excited for the season’s final major. In a city where he first played as a junior a decade ago, the Pole is still seeing new things like he did Wednesday. After ringing the Closing Bell, Hurkacz and Jabeur ventured out into Times Square to watch as their effort was displayed on a giant billboard for everyone to see.
“Seeing Times Square for the first time, it makes such a huge impression,” Hurkacz said. “It’s difficult to describe in words. Then seeing a little bit of your face out there is really cool.
“Just the experience right there in the centre of Manhattan, closing the bell for the day is kind of a surreal experience. It’s really incredible as a tennis player what things you can experience that you never imagined before in your life that you would do.”
[ATP APP]Hurkacz is generally interested in investment and some of his close friends who have experience help him with it. The Pole explained that it is important to think about the future, even though he is fully focused on his professional tennis career.
“I hope I’m playing for over 10 more years. If I’m healthy, that’s what I’m doing. At the end of the day, for a tennis player, I think it’s difficult if one day you either decide to end your career or are about to finish the career, or maybe the body isn’t as fit as before and it’s difficult to end,” Hurkacz said. “To transition just like that to a completely different life, then it’s difficult.
“But if you’re planning your future, if you have set goals, if you have investment plans or maybe you have some business ideas, or you have friends that help you out, then you can navigate easier your post-career and also enjoy a different side of life. As a tennis player, you are really 100 per cent committed to becoming a better player every single day.”
The eight-time ATP Tour titlist will hope for a deep run at Flushing Meadows after quarter-final appearances in Montreal and Cincinnati following surgery for a torn meniscus he suffered at Wimbledon.
<img src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/08/22/03/53/hurkacz-jabeur-nasdaq-2024-closing-bell.jpg” style=”width:100%;” alt=”Hubert Hurkacz and Ons Jabeur visit the Nasdaq MarketSite in Times Square to ring the Closing Bell.” />
[NEWSLETTER FORM]Past US Open champions and fans’ favourites treated an Arthur Ashe crowd to superstar matchups and hilarious mic’d-up interactions during Wednesday evening’s Stars of the Open at Flushing Meadows.
If bright smiles could have secured a victory, Carlos Alcaraz and Andre Agassi could have easily stated their case, but it was the pair of four-time US Open singles champions, Novak Djokovic and John McEnroe, who defeated the Spaniard-American duo 10-8 at the Fan Week exhibition. Italians Matteo Berrettini and Jasmine Paolini began the night by defeating Sebastian Korda and Iga Swiatek 11-9.
This point literally had everything 😮 pic.twitter.com/sNe10aTTTR
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) August 22, 2024
Juan Martin del Potro, former World No. 3 in the PIF ATP Rankings, made a grand return to Arthur Ashe Stadium. The 2009 titlist, who earlier practised with Djokovic, partnered fellow Argentine Gabriela Sabatini to an 11-9 win against Andy Roddick and Caroline Wozniacki.
Home favourites Sloane Stephens and Frances Tiafoe closed the night with a 10-6 victory against actor Boris Kodjoe and Taylor Townsend.
<img src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/08/22/02/07/del-potro-sabatini-us-open-2024.jpg” style=”width:100%;” alt=”Juan Martin del Potro and Gabriela Sabatini.” />All photos: Sarah Stier/Getty Images
<img src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/08/22/02/05/mcenroe-djokovic-us-open-2024.jpg” style=”width:100%;” alt=”John McEnroe and Novak Djokovic.” />
<img src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/08/22/02/32/stephens-tiafoe-us-open-2024.jpg” style=”width:100%;” alt=”Sloane Stephens and Frances Tiafoe.” />
[NEWSLETTER FORM]#NextGenATP Alex Michelsen led a teenage American charge Wednesday at the Winston-Salem Open, where the 19-year-old raced past Belgian Zizou Bergs 6-1, 6-2.
Competing this week at a career-high No. 52 in the PIF ATP Rankings, the 11th seed is into his sixth quarter-final of the season. Michelsen fended off the three break points he faced, all of which came in the opening set, and dropped just three points behind his first serve in the second set to advance.
“It was a good match. I played very well, didn’t get broken, which for me is always a plus,” said Michelsen, who next faces Christopher Eubanks. “I’m returning well right now, so hopefully I can give [Chris] some trouble tomorrow.
“I’ve been playing well the last couple weeks. The last match I lost was to Jannik [Sinner], so I feel like I’m playing pretty well right now.”
[ATP APP]The California native, who celebrates his 20th birthday Sunday, is second in the PIF ATP Live Race To Jeddah. He is aiming for a return trip to the Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF, which runs from 18-22 December. Last year Michelsen did not advance beyond the round-robin stage.
Michelsen’s close friend Learner Tien continued his dream debut week on the ATP Tour by become the youngest American tour-level quarter-finalist since Brandon Nakashima in 2020 (Delray Beach). The 18-year-old cruised past Thiago Seyboth Wild 6-4, 6-3.
Tien advanced through qualifying and has since built upon his momentum. He earned his maiden tour-level win in the opening round and now awaits Pablo Carreno Busta or Aleksandar Vukic in the last eight.
As a result of his success, Tien has climbed two places to eighth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Jeddah. The lefty is a two-time titlist at the USTA Boys’ 18s National Championships (2022, 2023).
Tien is set to crack the Top 200 of the PIF ATP Rankings for the first time Monday. He has enjoyed great success on the North American hard courts this summer, claiming his maiden ATP Challenger Tour title in July in addition to four ITF M15 trophies.
Eubanks saved two match points to oust 17th seed Roman Safiullin 6-3, 1-6, 7-6(8). The 28-year-old trailed 5/6 and 7/8 in the deciding-set tie-break, but held his nerve to stay alive. Eubanks fired 16 aces and fended off nine of the 11 break points he faced, according to Infosys ATP Stats.
The American avenged last week’s loss to Safiullin, who beat Eubanks in the quarters of the ATP Challenger Tour title in Cary, North Carolina, 100 miles east of Winston-Salem. Safiullin went on to win the title. Eubanks will next look to improve upon his 1-0 Lexus ATP Head2Head record against Michelsen. Last year in Mallorca, Eubanks defeated Michelsen in a first-round three setter before eventually lifting the trophy at the grass ATP 250.
Australian Rinky Hijikata also saved two match points to reach the quarter-finals. Hijikata overcame last year’s semi-finalist Borna Coric 3-6, 6-3, 7-5 after tallying four straight games from 3-5 in the decider. Coric twice had match point on his serve at 5-3.
Former World No. 7 David Goffin advanced with a 6-3, 6-3 victory against Arthur Rinderknech while 15th seed Pavel Kotov ended the run of American lucky loser Zachary Svajda 3-6, 6-3, 6-4.
[NEWSLETTER FORM]60th tour-level QF 🪩@David__Goffin gets the better of Rinderknech 6-3 6-3 to reach the quarter-finals in @WSOpen #WSOpen pic.twitter.com/PWrM8aIxtN
— ATP Tour (@atptour) August 21, 2024
#NextGenATP Joao Fonseca celebrated his 18th birthday Wednesday in style. The Brazilian advanced to the final round of qualifying at the US Open, where he dropped just three points behind his first serve en route to a 6-4, 6-2 victory against Frenchman Calvin Hemery.
Last year’s US Open boys’ singles champion’s birthday gift was the constant chants from the Court 8 crowd, “Jo-ao Fon-seca!”, “Jo-ao Fon-seca!”
Now one win away from competing in his maiden major main draw, Fonseca will face American Eliot Spizzirri in the third round. Spizzirri in May finished No. 1 in the ITA final singles rankings for the second consecutive year. The University of Texas graduate beat Belgian Joris De Loore 7-5, 7-6(5) to advance.
Fonseca, sixth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Jeddah, won his first ATP Challenger Tour title this month in Lexington, Kentucky. He is aiming for his maiden trip to the 20-and-under Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF, which runs from 18-22 December.
Fellow #NextGenATP star Vilius Gaubas also advanced to the final round of qualifying. The Lithuanian defeated French veteran Richard Gasquet 6-2, 6-4. After the match, there was an on-court presentation to honour Gasquet in his farewell US Open.
Gaubas, who is half the age of 38-year-old Gasquet, won 73 per cent of his first-serve points. This week is the first time that Gaubas has competed in Grand Slam qualifying. He earned his first ATP Challenger Tour title earlier this month in Cordenons, Italy and currently sits seventh in the PIF ATP Live Race to Jeddah.
[ATP APP]Gaubas will next meet another player who is competing in his final US Open — Diego Schwartzman, former No. 8 in the PIF ATP Rankings. Schwartzman won 7-5, 6-4 in an all-Argentine battle against Thiago Agustin Tirante.
The 32-year-old Schwartzman announced earlier this year that he will retire after the Argentina Open in 2025. He is aiming for his 11th consecutive US Open main draw appearance. Schwartzman’s best results at Flushing Meadows came in 2017 and 2019, when he reached the quarter-finals.
#NextGenATP hopes Coleman Wong and Luca Van Assche suffered tight three-set defeats. Yu Hsiou Hsu survived Wong 1-6, 6-2, 7-6(8). Radu Albot overcame a second-set slump to down Van Assche 6-2, 0-6, 6-4.
Aslan Karatsev advanced with a convincing 6-3, 6-0 victory over Marc Polmans while Lucas Pouille ousted fellow Frenchman Harold Mayot 6-2, 1-6, 7-6(12).
[NEWSLETTER FORM]
Britons Sonay Kartal and Lily Miyazaki reach the final round of US Open qualifying, but Heather Watson and Paul Jubb are beaten.
Richard Gasquet bade farewell to more than two decades worth of US Open memories on Wednesday. The Frenchman, who reached the semi-finals in 2013, was celebrated with an on-court presentation following his second-round qualifying loss to #NextGenATP Vilius Gaubas.
During the ceremony, US Open tournament director Stacey Allaster presented the former World No. 7 in the PIF ATP Rankings with a symbol of thanks and Gasquet addressed the crowd. The 38-year-old was aiming to reach his 20th consecutive US Open main draw.
“I will keep these memories for my life,” Gasquet said. “It’s a little bit sad for me to finish this year [like this], but I’m really happy with how I’ve played here in New York… to be here with the crowd, to feel this emotion, these feelings. You play tennis to feel these kind of feelings. It’s electric, it’s incredible for me to play in New York.”
[ATP APP]Gasquet is continuing to work hard on Tour, with no official retirement date set. The 16-time tour-level titlist earned his 600th match win last year in Stuttgart. This season in Madrid, Gasquet competed in his 1,000th match.
“I’m so lucky,” Gasquet added. “I played on the best court here with a lot of crowds. It was the most incredible atmosphere you can face on a tennis court, playing with 20,000 people on a centre court. I played [Roger] Federer, [Novak] Djokovic, [Rafael] Nadal, the best players on this court, and I’m proud with the way I played here in New York.”
The 2002 boys’ singles champion at Flushing Meadows, Gasquet made his US Open main-draw debut as a 19-year-old in 2005, when he reached the fourth round. He posted a 30-18 career main-draw record at the season’s fourth major.
“I hope to come back with you, in the crowd, next year,” Gasquet concluded.
Did You Know?
Argentine Diego Schwartzman is also competing in his farewell US Open. The 32-year-old, who advanced to the final round of qualifying, announced earlier this year that he will retire after the Argentina Open in 2025. The two-time quarter-finalist is aiming for his 11th consecutive US Open main-draw appearance.
Jannik Sinner has been worn down by the investigation into his positive tests for a banned substance, says his coach Darren Cahill.
Filip Krajinovic called the situation he was in Monday evening “strange”. The former No. 26 player in the PIF ATP Rankings was emotional during his first-round qualifying match against Jurij Rodionov at the US Open to the point that he struggled to play.
Rodionov won 6-4, 6-2 in a straightforward 71 minutes. His Serbian opponent was not emotional because he was losing, but because the 32-year-old knew it was the end of his tennis journey. The defeat marked the final match of Krajinovic’s standout career.
“I was struggling for the past year and a half, thinking what to do. I was not happy with my form. I was not happy with my body, and I didn’t play the level I wanted. I dropped a lot. I decided to finish after the US Open,” Krajinovic told ATPTour.com. “I was really, really sad [Monday]. I couldn’t really even play. I was crying on the court because the whole life you’re playing and you’re competing, so it was not easy to say goodbye, but at the same time, I’m happy that now I’m free.”
Krajinovic set high standards for himself. It was one of the reasons he cracked the world’s Top 30, reached five ATP Tour finals and defeated four Top 10 opponents. But in the past couple of years he has not been able to maintain the level he has been used to for much of his career.
The Serbian struggled with a wrist injury, broke a finger and dealt with “a couple of little things”. As that happened, he realised that physically he was not quite as quick, which made a difference on court. With that came a slide in the PIF ATP Rankings.
“When you drop to play small tournaments, motivation is not the same. I just didn’t feel right, I didn’t feel well, and I was not hungry enough,” Krajinovic said. “If you’re not 100 per cent into it, there’s no chance you can go back where I wanted to be. So I felt like I was not enjoying it and I saw like this that I was not going to be where I wanted to be, which is Top 50 for sure.”
After Roland Garros this year, Krajinovic decided he would play for a couple of more months and retire after the US Open. Despite the loss, it was a special moment on Court 4. Many of Krajinovic’s closest friends, including Dusan Lajovic, Miomir Kecmanovic, Nikola Cacic and Serbian Davis Cup captain Viktor Troicki stayed late into the night to support him.
“Those are my biggest and best friends. I really love them,” Krajinovic said. “They stayed all day there to watch me and say goodbye. It was really nice.”
[ATP APP]They all took to social media to congratulate their friend on his accomplishments, which were plentiful.
The moment that stands out to him the most is his run to the final of the 2017 Rolex Paris Masters, his lone championship match at an ATP Masters 1000 event. World No. 77 at the time, Krajinovic qualified, then defeated Top 15 players Sam Querrey and John Isner to earn the right to play for the trophy.
But that was far from his only moment in the spotlight. Krajinovic had the game to challenge anyone on Tour on his day. The Serbian claimed his two Lexus ATP Head2Head meetings against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and defeated the likes of Daniil Medvedev and Tomas Berdych.
In 2020, he earned one of the most impressive victories of his career at the venue where he ultimately retired: the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. That year, the Cincinnati ATP Masters 1000 tournament was held in New York because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Krajinovic throttled Dominic Thiem 6-2, 6-1. Two weeks later, the Austrian won the US Open.
“I am very proud. I’m very proud of my career,” Krajinovic said. “The only thing where I’m a little bit sad is I didn’t win an ATP Krajinovic reflects on retirement: 'It was not easy to say goodbye'. I had five finals, five tough finals. That’s the only thing I wanted to have, but didn’t happen for some reason. But everything else I would sign [for] because I think I played the way I wanted. I had very good results and my highest was 26, which I really appreciate. I left the court happy, because I think that I did well.”
For now, Krajinovic would like to take some time for himself back in Serbia to rest and evaluate what will be next. But the 32-year-old expects to remain in tennis after dedicating his life to the sport for so many years.
When Krajinovic was 14 years old, he left Serbia for Florida to train at the IMG Academy and chase his dream of becoming a professional tennis player. Practice partners included Kei Nishikori, Max Mirnyi and Radek Stepanek, who had the level he one day hoped to reach.
Nearly two decades later, at the end of a standout career on the ATP Tour, he is preparing to fly to Bradenton once more to visit the place where his journey began.
“It was not easy. I came to the States when I was 14, alone, without anybody. I went to that Academy [and] I didn’t know anything. I didn’t know how to speak English, so that was my biggest problem when I went there,” Krajinovic said. “It was hard, but at the same time it was very, very good, because I knew that was my opportunity to improve and to practise with those guys. It was unbelievable.”
[NEWSLETTER FORM]