Defending champion Damir Dzumhur made a strong start to his Turkish Airlines Open Antalya campaign on Monday, defeating Australian Matthew Ebden 6-4, 7-5 to reach the second round. 

The fifth seed is trying to become the first player to retain the Antalya trophy. This is the third edition of the ATP 250 tournament, which was won by Yuichi Sugita in 2017. This was Dzumhur and Ebden’s first FedEx ATP Head2Head meeting, and Dzumhur, despite winning just two more points overall in the match, converted three of the seven break points he earned to advance after one hour and 22 minutes. 

Dzumhur is trying to win an ATP Tour title for the third consecutive year. In 2017, he lifted his first two tour-level trophies, in St. Petersburg and Moscow, en route to reaching a career-high of No. 23 in the ATP Rankings. In the next round, the 27-year-old will face Turkish wild card Altug Celikbilek, who upset former World No. 10 Ernests Gulbis 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 in one hour and 53 minutes. It was the first ATP Tour main draw match in World No. 443 Celikbilek’s career.

#NextGenATP Frenchman Ugo Humbert also moved into the second round. The 20-year-old beat Argentine Federico Delbonis 6-3, 7-5 in 78 minutes. It is the sixth seed’s sixth tour-level victory of the year, and he entered 2019 with just two wins in his career. He will face another #NextGenATP player in 19-year-old Miomir Kecmanovic, who advanced on Sunday. Both men are currently inside the Top 10 in the ATP Race To Milan.

Indian Prajnesh Gunneswaran eliminated former World No. 8 Janko Tipsarevic 6-0, 7-6(6) to set a clash with Italian Lorenzo Sonego and Aussie Bernard Tomic eliminated seventh seed Andreas Seppi 4-6, 6-4, 6-4. Tomic, who struck 24 aces — including six in the first game of the match — will next play German Peter Gojowczyk.

More Results
Peter Gojowczyk def. [W] Ergi Kirkin 6-3, 6-7(3), 6-2
Bradley Klahn def. [Q] Steve Darcis 6-3, 6-2
[Q] Viktor Troicki def. Jozef Kovalik 7-6(3), 6-4
Roberto Carballes Baena def. [Q] JC Aragone 6-4, 7-6(2)

Roland Garros Champions Eliminated
Jonathan Erlich and Artem Sitak beat Roland Garros champions Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies, the top seeds, 6-3, 7-6(3) to reach the second round. Krawietz and Mies also lost in the first round of last week’s NOVENTI OPEN.

Second seeds Marcelo Demoliner and Divij Sharan avoided the upset bug, defeating wild cards Tuna Altuna and Cem Ilkel 7-5, 6-2.

Andy Murray will continue his comeback from right hip resurfacing surgery on Tuesday in partnership with Marcelo Melo at the Nature Valley International in Eastbourne.

Murray will join forces with Melo on Tuesday against top-seeded Colombians Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah not before 4 p.m. local time on Centre Court at Devonshire Park, venue of the ATP 250 grass-court tournament.

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The 32-year-old teamed up with Feliciano Lopez last week at The Queen’s Club, winning the Fever-Tree Championships crown (d. Ram/Salisbury). It was Murray’s first team title since October 2011, when he partnered his brother, Jamie Murray, to the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships trophy.

Murray announced last week that he plans to compete with Pierre-Hugues Herbert at Wimbledon, which begins on 1 July.

No. 53 Feliciano Lopez, +60
The 37-year-old became the oldest champion at the Fever-Tree Championships in the Open Era and the first wild card to lift the trophy at The Queen’s Club since Pete Sampras in 1999. Lopez claimed his second trophy at the grass-court ATP 500 tournament following wins against Marton Fucsovics, Milos Raonic, Felix Auger-Aliassime and Gilles Simon.

The Spaniard also became the first player since Mark Philippoussis in 1997 to win both titles in the same year, after lifting the doubles trophy alongside Andy Murray. Lopez jumps 60 positions in the ATP Rankings to No. 53, his highest position since spending his last day in the No. 37 spot exactly one year ago. Read More & Watch Queen’s Club Final Highlights.

No. 23 David Goffin, +10
The Belgian advanced to his first tour-level championship match in 19 months at the NOVENTI OPEN. Goffin ousted eighth seed Guido Pella, Radu Albot, second seed Alexander Zverev and MercedesCup champion Matteo Berrettini en route to the championship match, where he fell in straight sets to 10-time champion Roger Federer. The 2017 Nitto ATP Finals runner-up rises 10 spots to No. 23 in the ATP Rankings. Read More & Watch Halle Final Highlights.

No. 25 Gilles Simon, +13
The 34-year-old reached his first ATP Tour final of the season at the Fever-Tree Championships after four three-set victories at The Queen’s Club. Simon battled past James Ward, 2015 finalist Kevin Anderson, 2007 runner-up Nicolas Mahut and World No. 13 Daniil Medvedev, before a final-set tie-break loss to Lopez in the championship match. The Frenchman leaps 13 places to No. 25 in the ATP Rankings.

Other Notable Movers
No. 46 Richard Gasquet, +8
No. 56 Leonardo Mayer, -8
No. 57 Philipp Kohlschreiber, -7
No. 69 Steve Johnson, +7
No. 70 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, +7
No. 73 Robin Haase, -7
No. 79 Sam Querrey, -11
No. 81 Jeremy Chardy, -16
No. 91 Matthew Ebden, -11

Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis announced on Monday his intention to retire after competing in The Championships at Wimbledon, which begins on 1 July.

The former World No. 8, who played his last ATP Tour event at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships in February, issued a statement on social media, saying, “I wanted to take the time to write to you all and let you know that this upcoming Wimbledon will be my last tournament as a tennis professional.

“I am extremely grateful to the All England Club for granting me a main draw wild card… and giving me a chance to say goodbye to the sport that I love so much and has been such a big part of my life for the last 30+ years. This decision was not an easy one. It has proven tough for me, especially physically, to come back to where I feel like I belong.”

The 34-year-old, who reached the 2006 Australian Open final (l. to Federer) and reached the Wimbledon semi-finals later the same year (l. to Nadal), finished in the Top 100 for 12 straight seasons between 2005 and 2016. He has compiled a 348-273 singles match record, which includes four ATP Tour titles from 14 tour-level finals. He went 1-2 in doubles finals.

In the statement, Baghdatis added, “Even though my mind wants to do it, the limits of my body have prevented me to maintain and play at a consistent high level as I expect from myself. Especially the last two years have been very difficult for me with recurring injuries and pain.

“Besides that, I have a beautiful wife, two young daughters, and a third child on the way and I could not be more excited to spend more time with all of them at home.”

Baghdatis, the 2003 year-end junior World No. 1, married former WTA player Karolina Sprem in July 2012 and the couple has two daughters, Zahara and India.

“Although I am sad to say goodbye to the sport as an active player, I am very excited for the next chapter of my life – I am going to be staying heavily involved in tennis in a number of capacities, so you will continue to see me on the Tour.

“Lastly, there are so many people to thank who have been a part of this incredible journey with me, starting with my family first and for all. To all the people that have helped me become the person and tennis player I am today, I say thank you, especially to my Mum and Dad who supported me since the age of three to play tennis.

“Thank you for always believing in me and pushing me to become better. My team, my close friends, but especially the fans around the world. You made me feel welcome in each and every city and country I have ever been to, and your love, support, and energy is something I will truly miss.”

10 Things To Watch In Eastbourne

1) Grass 250s: The last stops on the road to Wimbledon are on the lawns of Eastbourne and Antalya. At the Nature Valley International, Guido Pella and Laslo Djere are the top two seeds, and they are joined by two-time champion and last week’s Queen’s Club titlist Feliciano Lopez, Queen’s Club runner-up Gilles Simon, 2016 champion Steve Johnson, and British No. 1 Kyle Edmund.

2) Feliciano Flying: As a 113th-ranked wild card, Lopez defeated Gilles Simon to capture his seventh ATP Tour singles title at The Queen’s Club, before lifting the doubles trophy with Andy Murray. Lopez is the first man to double up at the ATP 500 grass-court event since Mark Philippoussis in 1997. He is rewarded with a special exempt spot in the Eastbourne main draw, and soars 60 spots in the ATP Rankings to No. 53.

3) Pella Power: After losing his first four finals, top seed Pella claimed his first ATP Tour singles title in March at the Brasil Open. The breakthrough was part of a stellar clay-court season for Pella, who is tied with Rafael Nadal for the most clay-court wins this year (21).

4) Djere’s Here: Second seed Djere, like Pella, also picked up his maiden ATP Tour singles title this year during the ‘Golden Swing’ in Latin America. In his first tour-level championship match, in Rio de Janeiro, Djere defeated #NextGenATP Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime in straight sets.

5) First Wins Club: Pella and Djere are two of the nine first-time singles champions so far this year. Three of the remaining seven maiden trophy winners are also in the Eastbourne main draw: Radu Albot (Delray Beach), Reilly Opelka (New York) and Tennys Sandgren (Auckland).

Read Eastbourne: All You Need To Know

6) Going Wild: Top-ranked Brit Edmund picked up a wild card to play his second event of the year on home soil. Two of his countrymen also got wild cards: #NextGenATP talent Jay Clarke, and Daniel Evans, who has already claimed two ATP Challenger Tour crowns on grass this month (Surbiton, Nottingham).

7) Home Team: Three more British players are in the field: British No. 2 Cameron Norrie, who reached the ASB Classic final in January, James Ward, who has qualified for two ATP Tour main draws in a two-week span, and Paul Jubb, the NCAA singles champion from the University of South Carolina.

8) Grass Glory: Johnson joins Lopez as a former champions in the field, although Johnson’s 2016 title run came when the event was played in Nottingham. Former Nature Valley International finalists who are in this week’s draw include Fernando Verdasco, Sam Querrey, Pablo Cuevas and Simon; who fell to Lopez, as he did at The Queen’s Club on Sunday, in the 2013 championship match.

9) More Murray: After returning to tour-level action for the first time since the Australian Open in January, in his first doubles event in over two years, Murray won earned his first doubles title since 2011 with Lopez at The Queen’s Club. Murray will team up with Marcelo Melo in the Eastbourne doubles draw – and just like last week, Murray will face top seeds Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah in the opening round.

10) Doubles Duty: The two all-British teams who contested last year’s final join Murray in the doubles field: defending champions Luke Bambridge and Jonny O’Mara and finalists Ken Skupski and Neal Skupski. Fifty per cent of the top half of the doubles draw is British, including all five of those players.

10 Things To Watch In Antalya

1) Grass 250s: At the Turkish Airlines Open Antalya, defending champion Damir Dzumhur and two-time finalist Adrian Mannarino lead the field alongside No. 1 seed Benoit Paire.

2) Paire Flair: Paire came into 2019 with one ATP Tour singles title to his name, but he has already hoisted trophies at clay-court events in Marrakech and Lyon this season, and is one of just eight players to have won multiple singles titles this year. Paire will now try to translate that success to grass, after losing his opening grass-court match of the year to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in Halle last week.

3) The Champ Returns: Dzumhur downed Mannarino in last year’s final, giving the Bosnian his third career ATP Tour singles title. Dzumhur was 13-17 last year coming into Antalya, but he pulled himself up to a 50 per cent success rate for the season and a career-high ATP Ranking of No. 23, after clinching the title. This year, the World No. 62 enters the draw with a 5-10 record in 2019.

4) Lucky Number Seven: Mannarino experienced a long-awaited career highlight at the Libema Open this month, when he claimed his first ATP Tour singles title at ‘s-Hertogenbosch in his seventh tour-level championship match. Two of those his final losses came in the first two editions of the Turkish Airlines Open Antalya. Mannarino owns 48 career wins on grass, which is the 10th-most of players ranked inside the Top 100 of the ATP Rankings.

5) Viva Italia: Andreas Seppi has the ninth-most grass-court match-wins of the current Top 100 ranked players with 58 career victories on the surface. The 35-year-old had been the most recent Italian grass-court titlist on the ATP Tour (2011 Eastbourne) until Matteo Berrettini triumphed at the MercedesCup earlier this month.

Read Antalya: All You Need To Know

6) Aussie Rules: Third seed Jordan Thompson lost to Mannarino in the ‘s-Hertogenbosch final, but it was still a breakthrough week for the Australian after reaching his first ATP Tour singles final. Thompson owns a 19-12 record this season, a huge improvement from 2018, where he claimed one victory from 12 tour-level encounters.

7) Going for Grass Glory: No. 4 seed Pablo Carreno Busta is one of three former Top 10 players in the draw. The former World No. 10 is seeking his first victory on grass – he is 0-6 on the surface in his career, including four first-round losses at Wimbledon.

8) Perfect 10: Alongside Carreno Busta, fellow former Top 10 players Janko Tipsarevic and Ernests Gulbis are also in the field. Tipsarevic, who reached No. 8 in 2012, missed the entirety of 2018, returned from two hamstring surgeries at the 2019 Australian Open and made his first tour-level quarter-final since 2016 in Houston. Gulbis hit his career-high ATP Ranking of No. 10 in 2014.

9) Wild Ones: Three Turkish players received the main-draw wild cards: 23-year-old Cem Ilkel, 22-year-old Altug Celikbilek, and 20-year-old Ergi Kirkin. All three are seeking their first victory in an ATP Tour main draw; for Kirkin, this will mark his tour-level debut.

10) Doubling Up: Last year’s champions Marcelo Demoliner and Santiago Gonzalez are back in Antalya – but not paired together. Demoliner and partner Divij Sharan are seeded second, while Gonzalez is third-seeded alongside one of the 2017 Antalya champions, Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi. Reigning Roland Garros champions Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies are the No. 1 seeds.

A LOOK BACK
Ilkley Trophy (Ilkley, UK): What was the key for Dominik Koepfer in claiming his first ATP Challenger Tour title and clinching a Wimbledon wild card? How about a dish of pasta carbonara at Piccolino’s. Every night.

“Ilkley is a nice little town and I went to the same dinner spot every night. One of those superstitions.”

The grass-court swing concluded in thrilling fashion on Sunday, with Koepfer clinching his maiden ATP Challenger Tour title in a deciding tie-break. The 25-year-old rallied past Dennis Novak 3-6, 6-3, 7-6(5) to reign on the lawns of Ilkley. He saved one match point at 4-5 30/40 in the third set, eventually prevailing after one hour and 49 minutes.

A steady diet of low backhand slices – and plenty of pasta carbonara – was the key to victory for Koepfer, who was competing in just his second Challenger final. Under the guidance of former pro Rhyne Williams, the German had been making steady progress in recent weeks and pushed eventual champion Daniel Evans to the brink of defeat in Nottingham. One week later, he would not be denied, reeling off 10 sets in a row to reach the final. The run included a pair of Top 100 wins over Yannick Maden and Ugo Humbert, before ousting an in-form Novak in the championship.

“For the first set and a half he was dictating and I was just defending too much,” said Koepfer. “I couldn’t find my rhythm. But later in the second I just found a way. The third set was a battle back and forth. Any point could have gone either way but to pull it out in the tie-break was lucky.

“Obviously I knew what was on the line. It’s a title and a Wimbledon wild card. My first main draw at a Grand Slam. There were nerves in the first set for sure, but I started to play a little looser and found a way.”

As is tradition for the Ilkley champion, a main draw wild card into Wimbledon was awarded to Koepfer. One year after falling to Norbert Gombos in five sets in the final round of qualifying, the former Tulane University standout will make his Grand Slam debut at the All England Club.

Our 2019 #IlkleyTrophy champion @DominikKoepfer ? looks forward to @Wimbledon ? pic.twitter.com/sbrxHaClXn

— ILTSC (@Ilkleytennis) June 23, 2019

Internazionali di Tennis Emilia Romagna (Parma, Italy): What a day for the 37-year-old contingent! Earlier on Sunday, Roger Federer reigned in Halle and Feliciano Lopez prevailed at Queen’s Club on the ATP Tour. Meanwhile, on the Challenger circuit, it was Tommy Robredo who turned back the clock with a heart-pounding victory over Federico Gaio in Parma.

Robredo claimed a thrilling final encounter over the home hope Gaio, taking his second title of the year 7-6(10), 5-7, 7-6(6) after three hours and 15 minutes. After saving six set points in the opener, he would later storm back from 0-3 down in the deciding set. It is the longest final of the 2019 season thus far.

The former World No. 5 is mounting a serious charge up the ATP Rankings in his quest to return to the Top 100. His victory in Parma boosts his position by 42 spots, rising to No. 174.

Robredo, who also prevailed in Poznan, Poland, just two weeks ago, is the oldest player to win multiple titles in a single season. He has now lifted 19 trophies in total in his illustrious career, with 12 coming on the ATP Tour and an additional seven on the ATP Challenger Tour.

Bratislava Open (Bratislava, Slovakia): Three years ago, Norbert Gombos prevailed on home soil in Bratislava at the indoor hard-court Challenger. Now, he has an outdoor clay-court trophy to add to his collection. Gombos triumphed at the inaugural Bratislava Open on Sunday, defeating Attila Balazs 6-3, 3-6, 6-2.

The only city to host a Challenger on multiple surfaces, Bratislava made its debut on clay to rave reviews. Packed crowds featured at the TK Slovan, with former Top 20 stars Miloslav Mecir and Dominik Hrbaty lending a helping hand throughout the week.

Internationaux de Tennis de Blois (Blois, France): Top seed Pedro Sousa rallied past Kimmer Coppejans 4-6, 6-3, 7-6(4) to claim his sixth ATP Challenger Tour title in Blois. The Portuguese did not drop a set en route to the final and he would be made to work on Sunday, rallying from a break down in the decider.

Coppejans, meanwhile, was appearing in his first final of the season after saving a combined six match points in the quarter-finals and semi-finals. He rallied from a set and a break down in both matches.

Fergana Challenger (Fergana, Uzbekistan): Learn all about Emil Ruusuvuori’s maiden triumph, as the #NextGenATP Finn became the fifth-youngest winner of 2019…

A LOOK AHEAD
With the majority of today’s Challenger stars competing in Wimbledon qualifying, the lone tournament of the week is held in Milan. Hugo Dellien is the top seed, with Giulio Zeppieri and Lorenzo Musetti leading the Italian #NextGenATP charge. Zeppieri, aged 17, is coming off a semi-final appearance in Parma.