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.

This week, the Fergana Challenger celebrated its 20th edition on the ATP Challenger Tour. On Sunday, its champion reveled in a milestone of his own.

Emil Ruusuvuori etched his name in the history books with a 6-3, 6-2 win over 12th seed Roberto Cid Subervi, earning his maiden title. He is just the fourth player from Finland to capture a Challenger crown in the last 30 years and the first since Jarkko Nieminen in 2013.

The Nordic nations are making a splash on the #NextGenATP scene, with 20-year-old Ruusuvuori joining Norway’s Casper Ruud and Sweden’s Mikael Ymer as recent Challenger champions. The Helsinki native is now the highest-ranked Finnish player, rising to a career-high No. 300 in the ATP Rankings.

It was an impressive week for Ruusuvuori on the hard courts of Fergana, in just his 10th Challenger appearance. After rallying from a set down to upset top seed Pedja Krstin, he needed a deciding tie-break to defeat home hope Khumoyun Sultanov in the semis, before streaking past Cid Subervi in one hour and 21 minutes on Sunday.

Finland has been in search of a new standard bearer in singles ever since former World No. 13 Jarkko Nieminen retired in 2015. Henri Kontinen is leading the charge in doubles and Ruusuvuori is hoping to join his countryman in flying the Finnish flag.

Youngest Winners In 2019

Moreover, Ruusuvuori is the fifth-youngest champion on the Challenger circuit this year, joining Ymer, Jannik Sinner, Corentin Moutet, Ugo Humbert, Jay Clarke and J.J. Wolf as #NextGenATP winners.

ATPChallengerTour.com spoke to the flying Finn after his victory in Fergana…

Emil, congrats on winning your first Challenger title. How does it feel to lift the trophy?
It feels amazing. I didn’t expect it to go this well, but everything worked from the first match and I’m just really happy to win my first title.

To win your first title is never easy. What was the key this week?
It’s of course very challenging mentally, especially the last few matches. There’s a lot of pressure and nerves, but you just have to keep focusing on your game and play your best.

Take us through the final. Did you feel nervous today against Roberto?
Of course, in a first Challenger final you’re going to feel extra nervous. But I still played good tennis and I think it was a good quality final.

How important is a week like this as you’re transitioning from Futures to Challengers?
It’s really important, since there’s a lot of points at stake. It helps my ranking a lot so I can enter Challengers more easily now, and is just important with everything I’m pushing for.

You haven’t played many Challengers. Did you expect this success to come so quickly?
Well, maybe I didn’t expect to win the title, but I’ve been improving a lot in the last few weeks. I don’t set any limits for myself, so I know my level. I’m happy with this.

As you’ve moved from juniors to pros, what have you learned about your game at this level? How has your game grown?
It’s really challenging at this level and everyone plays so well. It’s all decided by the smallest of things. A few points here and there can make the difference. I have to play closer to the baseline and be more aggressive. Just do everything better [than in juniors].

You are just the fourth player from Finland to win a title in the last 30 years, and the first since Jarkko Nieminen. How special is that? Do you hope to inspire your country to play tennis?
I actually didn’t even know that. It’s great to represent your country. That’s good to hear. I hope this drives the kids to start playing more tennis. We don’t have too many players at the moment, so I hope there will be more in the future.

Finnish Challenger Champions (since 1990)

What did you enjoy most about your time in Fergana?
I didn’t see much outside of the courts and the hotel, but everything here was great. The facilities are good too and everyone working here has done an excellent job. I have nothing to complain about.

For those of us who don’t know much about you, what do you enjoy doing off the court?
Pretty simple. If I’m at home in Finland, I like to just hang out with friends and go fishing. And of course watch ice hockey.

After undergoing hip surgery in January, Andy Murray considered it a victory to not have pain when he played with his kids. On Sunday, he recorded one of the most meaningful wins of his career by teaming with Feliciano Lopez to take the doubles title at the Fever-Tree Championships.

“I just won the doubles with Feli, with a metal hip. It’s mental, really,” said Murray. “That’s a cool thing to be able to have done just because of where I was a few months ago. I wasn’t thinking about this… I was really happy to be pain-free and enjoying life, literally just doing normal things. It’s really special. It’s more special than a lot of the singles tournaments that I’ve won for a lot of different reasons.”

Murray arrived at The Queen’s Club with no expectations for results or performance. But the Brit was on song from the first ball as he and Lopez defeated top seeds Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah in the opening round. Another major victory followed in the semi-finals over third seeds Henri Kontinen and John Peers before they won the final over Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury.

Even though his game proved good enough to beat the world’s best doubles teams at an ATP 500 tournament, Murray believes his form can improve even further.

“In terms of how I was hitting the ball, I think I did okay,” said Murray. “There’s things I can do better. I think a lot of it is positioning on the court, like where to stand after Feli has hit a return or where to position ourselves at the net.

“But one of the things that’s quite difficult with doubles is that you’re never going to find the partner who has everything, and you yourself don’t have everything. I have flaws in my game and Feli will have weaknesses in his game. But we used our strengths and complemented each other very well. You need to be able to do that and not get frustrated with yourself.”

Murray’s competitive streak never wavered throughout the week, but he also displayed a more relaxed attitude by smiling after great points and laughing with Lopez during changeovers. His fans are hopeful that the successful doubles run will lead to a quick transition back to singles, but the Brit is content to enjoy the ride for now.

“I’m happy with playing tennis and training and having no pain anymore. If I keep progressing, I would like to try to play singles,” said Murray. “My schedule could potentially be a bit different. I might not play three weeks in a row or two weeks back-to-back, for example. But I’m just quite happy doing what I’m doing now and just taking each week as it comes.”

Even if Murray’s hip doesn’t allow for a singles comeback, it may not mean the end of his career. After picking up his first ATP Tour doubles title in eight years, he said focusing solely on doubles is an option for his remaining years on tour.

“I didn’t see that as being something I would do [in January] just because I got zero enjoyment out of playing tennis then,” said Murray. “It’s fun for me to play doubles this week and just hit tennis balls and have a good time on the court again. I hope to get back to playing singles again, but if not, it’s probably something I’d consider.”

Shortly after defeating David Goffin to claim a record 10th NOVENTI OPEN title on Sunday, Roger Federer took to social media saying that it’s, “Good to be 10 again”. Coincidentally Federer’s twin daughters, Charlene and Myla, turn 10 in exactly a month.

“I turned 10 before them, they are turning 10 in July,” Federer told media in Halle, cracking a laugh. “I feel young again. Anyway, on the flight and then at home later tomorrow morning, when I wake up, I’ll feel old again. But for now I feel young.”

Federer is 37, but he isn’t playing like it. This is the first time the Swiss star has claimed 10 titles at one tournament, and it’s his third triumph of the year, giving him a total of 102 tour-level trophies.

“Obviously it feels really good. When it was all over… it was the first time I really thought of how it felt winning because I didn’t think I was visualising, imagining how it would feel to win my 10th here,” Federer said. “All of a sudden I was at match point. I wasn’t even really nervous because I felt I had been playing good, I’ve been so balanced that I was just at a good place. Then, when it was all over, I was just happy.”

It wasn’t an easy run for Federer, who needed three sets to beat former World No. 5 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the second round and seventh seed Roberto Bautista Agut in the quarter-finals. So he was fully focussed on each match in front of him, and he is only first processing the history he made at this ATP 500 tournament.

“It’s just a really good feeling to have and obviously now with a bit more reflection I think it’s a special moment in my career to win a title for the 10th time,” Federer said. “Especially one where I’ve been coming here for so long and have had so much success, the most success of any tournament actually that I’ve played. It feels great. So I’m very, very happy clearly.”

It has been a tremendous year for Federer, who is the first player to claim three tour-level titles in 2019. He also owns a 32-4 record, and his 88.9 winning percentage is the best of anyone on the ATP Tour.

Read More
A History Of Roger’s 10 Halle Titles
Federer’s My Story: When Roger Knew His Knee Might Not Be The Same
Watch Roger’s Post-Win Interview

That puts Federer in a strong position heading into Wimbledon, where he owns a record eight titles. The Swiss is not thinking that far ahead yet, though.

“First I want to enjoy this one. I want to take a couple of days off. I’ll speak to the team to hear if they want to have one day, two days or three days off, or another day off during the week,” Federer said. “I’m aware that usually when it went well for me here in Halle I’ve also had very successful Wimbledons. I’m not sure if every time but this definitely sets it up nicely and next to winning I also feel good physically.

“So that’s also a big week and it’s always important at my age I think to prove myself that I can last five matches in six days and tough ones along the way and actually feel the best on Sunday. So from that standpoint I think it’s very positive.”