Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden moved to within one win of capturing their third title of the season together on Saturday when they overcame Harri Heliovaara and Mate Pavic 6-7(3), 6-4, 10-6 at the Rolex Paris Masters.

In a hard-fought clash, the third seeds won 88 per cent (46/52) of their first-serve points and were strong in the key moments, saving all three break points to advance after 89 minutes.

If Bopanna and Ebden triumph in Paris, the Indian-Australian team would pass Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek by 60 points to become World No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Doubles Teams Rankings.

Bopanna and Ebden are chasing their second ATP Masters 1000 crown of the year, having triumphed in Indian Wells in March. They have won 12 of their past 14 matches, advancing to the final at the US Open and in Shanghai. They will aim to go one step further in Sunday’s title match when they meet Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury or Santiago Gonzalez and Edouard Roger-Vasselin.

Bopanna and Ebden will compete at the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin later this month to round out their season.

Paris is the city of love, but close friends Gael Monfils and Grigor Dimitrov had to put that aside briefly at the Rolex Paris Masters, where they competed in the latest Lexus ATP Head2Head Scavenger Hunt.

The former Top 10 stars raced in a Lexus vehicle to the historic Place des Vosges, where they worked through a scavenger hunt list. Dimitrov slid down a slide and Monfils did a quick dance.

At one point, Dimitrov sat down to pen a letter to Monfils nearby the Maison de Victor Hugo, which was once the home of famous writer Victor Hugo.

“Dear Gael,

So they say love is a bad thing to have in tennis, but this is all I have for you.

You won today, but what can I do? I cannot possibly stay mad at you.

All my love, G”

Why did Dimitrov write Monfils the poetic letter? Watch the full Lexus ATP Head2Head Scavenger Hunt above to find out.

Did You Know?
Monfils leads the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series 4-1, although they have not met on court since the Miami ATP Masters 1000 event in 2016. They first played one another in a tour-level clash at the 2011 US Open.

The singles field for the 2023 Nitto ATP Finals is set. Alexander Zverev and Holger Rune on Friday claimed the final two spots for the season finale, which will be played at the Pala Alpitour in Turin from 12-19 November.

Zverev and Rune join Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz, Daniil Medvedev, Jannik Sinner, Andrey Rublev and Stefanos Tsitsipas in the elite field.

With 20-year-olds Alcaraz and Rune both qualifying, two 20-and-under players will compete in the same Nitto ATP Finals for the first time since 2000, when 19-year-old Lleyton Hewitt and 20-year-old Marat Safin made their debuts.

Four of the stars have triumphed at the Nitto ATP Finals before. Six-time champion Djokovic can break his tie with Roger Federer for the most titles in year-end championships history (since 1970). Zverev won the title in 2018 and 2021, while Tsitsipas triumphed in 2019 as a 21-year-old, becoming the youngest tournament winner since 20-year-old Hewitt in 2001, and Medvedev lifted the trophy in 2020.

Djokovic, Alcaraz and Medvedev have reached No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings. Djokovic is in pole position to earn ATP Year-End No. 1 presented by Pepperstone honours. If the Serbian achieves the feat for a record-extending eighth time, he would also reach 400 career weeks at World No. 1 on 20 November, the day after the tournament ends. He would become the first player to reach the milestone.

ATP Chairman Andrea Gaudenzi said: “Congratulations to all the players that have qualified for the 2023 Nitto ATP Finals. It’s a reflection of a truly impressive season. This is a unique tournament, featuring only the best of the best, with so much on the line for players. The stage is now set for an incredible final showdown in Turin.”

Seven of this year’s eight competitors have qualified for or played in the Next Gen ATP Finals, including three champions: Tsitsipas (2018), Sinner (2019) and Alcaraz (2021).

The doubles field is also set. Ivan Dodig/Austin Krajicek, Wesley Koolhof/Neal Skupski, Rohan Bopanna/Matthew Ebden, Marcel Granollers/Horacio Zeballos, Santiago Gonzalez/Edouard Roger-Vasselin, Rajeev Ram/Joe Salisbury, Maximo Gonzalez/Andres Molteni and Rinky Hijikata/Jason Kubler will compete for the title at the Pala Alpitour.

This year’s Nitto ATP Finals will award a record $15 million in prize money. If the champion at this year’s tournament lifts the trophy without losing a match, he will earn more than $4.8 million, the largest prize money for an individual player in the history of tennis.

This will be the third edition of the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin. The draw is set to take place on Thursday 9 November at 3 p.m. CET.

Novak Djokovic gained revenge against Holger Rune on Friday at the Rolex Paris Masters, where he defeated the 2022 champion 7-5, 6-7(3), 6-4 in a rematch of last year’s final. The World No. 1 now holds a 48-9 record in Paris, having advanced to the semi-finals nine times.

The 20-year-old Rune upset Djokovic in the Paris title match last year to capture his first ATP Masters 1000 trophy. The Serbian ensured he would not suffer the same fate this season, though. In a high-quality match, he won 80 per cent (12/15) of his second-serve points in the first set and fended off a mid-match resurgence from Rune. After saving a match point at 4-5 in the second set, the Dane won nine of 10 points deep in the set to level, opening his shoulders to hit freely.

As he so often does, Djokovic regrouped in the third set. He gained an early break and offered Rune little opportunity on return, committing just one unforced error in the decider to improve to 31-1 on hard courts in 2023.

“It was quite a similar match to last year’s final, it was any body’s game in every set.” Djokovic said. “I played an awful tie-break in the second set, probably the worst one this year. But again credit to him for staying mentally tough and playing solid. We have similar games. Move well, defend well and all-round players.”

With his two-hours, 54-minute triumph, Djokovic levelled his Lexus ATP Head2Head series with Rune at 2-2, having also lost to the Dane in Rome this year. Chasing a record-extending seventh Rolex Paris Masters crown, Djokovic will meet Andrey Rublev or Alex de Minaur in his eighth semi-final of the season.

“He has been playing much better in the past few weeks since working with Boris,” said Djokovic on Rune, who started working with Djokovic’s former coach Boris Becker last month. “It was strange seeing Boris in the opposing box. I wish Holger and him all the best.”

The top seed, who survived a three-set scare against Tallon Griekspoor in the third round, has now won his past 16 matches and 29 of his past 30. His lone defeat came against Carlos Alcaraz at Wimbledon, with the 36-year-old winning titles at Roland Garros, Cincinnati and the US Open.

The 36-year-old leads Alcaraz — who was upset by Roman Safiullin in his Paris opener — by 850 points in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin, which serves as a barometer in the battle for year-end No. 1. Djokovic is chasing an eighth ATP Year-End No. 1 presented by Pepperstone.

Rune leaves Paris eighth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin. Of those below him, only Alex de Minaur can overtake the Dane in the final qualification spot for the Nitto ATP Finals. The Australian is currently 720 points behind Rune.

The doubles field for the Nitto ATP Finals is now set. Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni are the final team to qualify for the season finale, which will be held in Turin from 12-19 November.

The Argentines join Ivan Dodig/Austin Krajicek, Wesley Koolhof/Neal Skupski, Rohan Bopanna/Matthew Ebden, Marcel Granollers/Horacio Zeballos, Santiago Gonzalez/Edouard Roger-Vasselin, Rajeev Ram/Joe Salisbury and Rinky Hijikata/Jason Kubler at the prestigious tournament.

The defending champions are Ram and Salisbury, who triumphed at this year’s US Open. There is also a tight battle for the Year-End No. 1 Pepperstone ATP Doubles Team Ranking, with several duos still in contention. Koolhof and Skupski earned the honour one year ago.

Four teams — Bopanna/Ebden, Gonzalez/Roger-Vasselin, Gonzalez/Molteni and Hijikata/Kubler — will compete as pairs in the Nitto ATP Finals for the first time.

Gonzalez and Molteni have won five ATP Tour titles this season, tied for the most of any duo in Turin with Dodig and Krajicek. The Argentines earned crowns in Cordoba, Rio de Janeiro, Barcelona, Washington and at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Cincinnati.

Gonzalez and Molteni also advanced to the quarter-finals at two majors: Roland Garros and the US Open. They will both make their individual debuts at the year-end championships.

Stefanos Tsitsipas sealed his 300th career-win in style Friday at the Rolex Paris Masters, where he eased past Karen Khachanov 6-3, 6-4 to reach the semi-finals.

The seventh seed converted all three break points he earned to reach his third consecutive ATP Tour semi-final and match his 2022 run at the indoor Masters 1000 in Paris-Bercy. The Greek is yet to drop a set this week as he chases his second tour-level title of the season.

“It’s working well. I feel like I can mix up play,” said Tsitsipas, when asked about the variety he deployed to counter Khachanov’s baseline power. “It feels good to have so much variety and so much diversity in the way you can play. I take that as an opportunity to keep growing my game and keep looking forward at the many more matches to come and appreciate each moment that comes my way.”

Tsitsipas was rock solid for much of an 80-minute victory during which his only setback was when Khachanov reclaimed a break of serve in the sixth game of the second set. However, the Greek regained his composure to clinch another break of his own in the ninth game, and after bringing up match point with a stunning drop shot winner at 5-4, 30/15 he confidently served out to reach his second Masters 1000 semi-final of the season.

“It was a great feeling. I had great feel on the ball and went for it with no hesitation on the approach to the net,” said Tsitsipas, when asked about his drop shot. “These are nice shots to feel on the strings of the racquet… I’m not used to setting up a match point this way, but it felt good.”

Tsitsipas’ next opponent in France will be Grigor Dimitrov, who earlier downed Hubert Hurkacz 6-1, 4-6, 6-4. Tsitsipas holds a 6-1 Lexus ATP Head2Head lead against the Bulgarian, with their most recent meeting a three-set win for the Greek at this year’s United Cup.

The battle for the top pair in the Pepperstone ATP Live Doubles Teams Rankings is in full force at the Rolex Paris Masters.

Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden, who are currently third in the Race, booked their semi-final ticket Friday at the ATP Masters 1000 event, where they cruised past fifth seeds Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos 6-3, 6-2. The Indian-Australian duo won 92 per cent of their first-serve points, compared to their opponent’s 61 per cent. Bopanna and Ebden will next compete in their third consecutive tour-level semi-final.

After Harri Heliovaara and Mate Pavic upset top seeds Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek 6-4, 6-4 on Friday, Bopanna and Ebden have a chance to move to the top spot in the Pepperstone ATP Live Doubles Teams Rankings should they claim the Paris title. Bopanna and Ebden, who will face Heliovaara and Pavic in the semi-finals, trail World No. 1 team Dodig and Krajicek by 580 points.

In the bottom half of the draw, second seeds Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski will face Santiago Gonzalez and Edouard Roger-Vasselin in the quarter-finals Friday evening. Fourth seeds Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury meet Americans Nathaniel Lammons and Jackson Withrow in the last eight.

Koolhof and Skupski also have a chance at claiming the top spot in the Pepperstone ATP Live Doubles Teams Rankings on Monday. If Koolhof and Skupski fail to reach the final while Bopanna and Ebden triumph, the Indian-Australian team would pass Dodig and Krajicek by just 60 points to become World No. 1.

Watch the ATP Challenger Tour event in Ismaning, Germany and you will see a carpet court as orange as leaves turning colour in autumn. Do not be mistaken, it is not red clay, it is the last carpet tournament remaining on the ATP Challenger Tour or higher.

Swiss Marc-Andrea Huesler, who is seeded eighth at the Wolffkran Open by Tannenhof this week, is no stranger to the surface. Despite rarely competing on carpet at the pro level, the 27-year-old has found success in Ismaning, where he was crowned champion in 2020.

“Carpet is a bit special. It’s a bit of a changeup, pretty fast but absolutely playable,” Huelser told ATPTour.com. “I grew up on carpet a little so I know what it’s like. It plays pretty fast, especially serving, it’s really important. It’s easier to get free points with your serve, especially the slider serve, it somehow accelerates on the floor.

“It’s similar to grass because you have to stay low. If you manage to take the ball early, go to net and use the pace your opponent gives you, then you’re a good carpet player.”

Ismaning’s surface rewards hefty servers. No better example than last year’s champion Quentin Halys, who struck 107 aces across five matches, including 24 in the final, en route to lifting the trophy. The rarity of carpet tournaments also means players need to quickly grow accustomed to the surface upon their arrival in Germany.

“Many players are happy to practise longer than other tournaments,” tournament director Christoph Poehlmann said. “If possible, they arrive earlier and have more practice options It’s a big change for everybody and they need more time to practise.” 

Another memorable moment from last year’s event was when home hope 19-year-old Max Hans Rehberg went on a dream run to his maiden Challenger final. Now age 20, Rehberg kicked off this year’s edition by upsetting third seed Maxime Cressy.

“It’s special because some of the players here are German players who grew up on the surface and know that they can play on it because they are familiar with it,” Poehlmann said. “Our local wild card Rehberg has played on this surface since he was a child and last year he made the final. It was a great success for him to come so far in the tournament.”

Did You Know?
Former World No. 1 Jimmy Connors claimed 45 titles on carpet while John McEnroe captured 43 trophies on the surface. But since 2009, carpet has not been featured on the ATP Tour.