With the Sydney International set to get underway this week in the coastal capital of New South Wales, some of the world’s top players took the time to witness some of the city’s famous sights.

World No. 26 Diego Schwartzman, who is making his first appearance in Sydney this week, joined 2017 Banque Eric Sturdza Geneva Open finalist Mischa Zverev on a boat in the prolific Sydney Harbour. The ATP World Tour stars enjoyed some fine dining and a game of mini-tennis next to the Sydney Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge on a brilliant sunny day in southern Australia. 

“It’s amazing for me. It’s my first time here in Sydney – I am enjoying it a lot,” said Schwartzman, the tournament’s third seed. “I came here the other night with my coach and my friends and it’s amazing to be here in the day. The weather is good today and I think I’m enjoying [it] a lot.” 

The eighth seed, Zverev, who plays Leonardo Mayer in the first round of the tournament, noticed quite the difference between tennis on land and sea.

“It’s very different, very unusual. There no way we are [playing like] on the mainland – we are on a boat – and we don’t have this view, so this is very unique,” said the 30-year-old German. “Sydney is a great city but I never got to see it from this point of view and I’m really enjoying myself.” 

Elsewhere in the city, Fabio Fognini, joined by 2017 US Open women’s singles champion Sloane Stephens, took a tour of the Sydney’s Cockatoo Island, having a quick hit on the unique grass courts of the island, which is a popular site for many cultural and heritage events in the region. 

“The island, it’s quite different – I’ve never been here so it’s something special also for us,” said Fognini. “…On tour we have no time to do these kind of thing because we are always in hotels and tennis courts, tennis courts and hotels, so I really enjoyed it.” 

The 28-player draw gets underway Sunday with defending champion Gilles Muller and six other Top 30 players headlining the action. In addition, 18-year-old Alex de Minaur returns to his hometown of Sydney following a breakthrough run to the semifinals of the Brisbane International presented by Suncorp, and is joined by compatriots Jordan Thompson, Alex Bolt and John Millman.

.@albertramos88 chats to the media ahead of #SydneyTennis: “It’s a great city.” pic.twitter.com/apmqXkP0OR

— Sydney International (@SydneyTennis) January 5, 2018

Earlier, top-seeded Albert Ramos-Vinolas participated in the draw ceremony for the tournament, which is currently in its 125^th edition. Ramos-Vinolas was the runner-up at last year’s Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters and will face either Thompson or Paolo Lorenzi in his opening match.

Gilles Simon entered the Tata Open Maharashtra doubles final looking to complete the tournament sweep after winning his first ATP World Tour singles title since 2015 earlier Saturday. A victory with Pierre-Hugues Herbert would have made Simon the first player to win both events at India’s ATP World Tour 250 tournament since Xavier Malisse in 2007.

But Robin Haase and Matwe Middelkoop spoiled the French party, winning their first title as a team in a back-and-forth thriller, 7-6(5), 7-6(5).

“To play the final there with three unbelievable athletes, it’s an honour to play there,” Middelkoop said. “I will never forget this for the rest of my life. This is my fifth title and I will come back here next year because you have to experience this. They’re celebrating tennis and this is what I like. Great crowd.”

It was Middelkoop’s fifth doubles title with three different partners, and Haase’s third doubles title, also with three different partners. Haase, who is the top Dutch singles player in the ATP Rankings at No. 42, had not won a doubles title since 2014 Gstaad (w/ Andre Begemann).

“The score was actually how the match was. Sometimes you can have a close match, but you feel you are better,” Haase said. “Today we didn’t feel so much better, that’s for sure.”

In fact, the Frenchmen were up a break in both sets, and served for the second set immediately after breaking for a 5-3 lead. However, after fending off one break point at 30/40— earning a set point, but also facing a second break point — they were unable to hold their lead.

And after the Dutchmen — who will be playing together full-time in 2018 after partnering for the first time at the tour level in Flushing Meadows, where they advanced to the quarter-finals — gained a 5/1 lead in the ensuing tie-break, they closed the match out on their second match point.

“Just to play those points, and we even talked to the other guys already a little bit,” Haase said. “We all enjoyed the match. Every point was great, almost.”

Haase and Middelkoop earned 250 ATP Rankings points and a share of $27,170, while Herbert and Simon captured 150 points each as well as a split of $14,280.

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Despite losing in the semi-finals of the Brisbane International presented by Suncorp to a red-hot Nick Kyrgios, Grigor Dimitrov can hold his head high knowing he’s started 2018 with the same momentum that he finished a career year in 2017. 

Last season’s Nitto ATP Finals titlist and defending Brisbane champion gritted through two tough three-set matches before falling to Nick Kyrgios in a 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 decision. Saving match points in his season-opening clash with John Millman, Dimitrov navigated Kyle Edmund in the quarter-finals in yet another two-and-a-half hour thriller. Against Kyrgios, however, the Bulgarian was unable to come up with the answer to his opponent’s cannonball serve and unpredictable patterns of play. 

“I’m glad at least I could play some matches and get to those clutch moments,” said Dimitrov. “Obviously, it was great to go through those three-setters, saving a match point in the first round.

“I’m building off those kind of matches. Obviously, today has been — it was again a tough match. I think I played well the first set… after that, there was not much else I could have done, I thought,” the 26-year-old added. “He was just serving unbelievable, just hitting his spots. Like, I even thought at some point was a little bit, like, carelessly hitting the ball, and they were getting in. 

“It was just good shots from him.”

Although Dimitrov was able to secure an early break thanks to a combination of his opponent’s wavering focus and his own tenacious defense, Kyrgios amped up the pressure on his serve and on return, hitting 19 aces in the one hour, 33-minute encounter. The prolific shotmaker is into his first ATP World Tour final on home soil.

For the first time in their now 2-1 FedEx ATP Head2Head series, Dimitrov was flummoxed by the Australian’s capricious style. 

“I mean, there were a lot of balls that were pretty casual, but what can I do? There’s no point for me to get frustrated or pissed whatsoever. You just have to accept it,” said Dimitrov.

“And we know how he is. He can switch from playing unbelievable to just missing, you know, the easiest shots and all that … sometimes when there’s no way out, you try to change up the game and break the rhythm of a player. And today just everything, whatever I thought he tried, it was just great.”

Dimitrov heads to Melbourne next, where he reached the semi-finals of the Australian Open last year, following his Brisbane triumph. It was his second Grand Slam semi-final – before falling to Rafael Nadal in one of the best Grand Slam matches of 2017.

“I’m a little bit tired, but it’s good,” said Dimitrov on how he feels following Brisbane, leading into Melbourne. “It’s great to get, as I said, those matches early on. Try to play a few three-setters to see how the body feels after two-and-a-half hours. 

“[But] the body feels great. As I said, a little bit tired, but I think after couple of days off and getting bit of treatment, things will get back on track.”

Nick Kyrgios thundered 19 aces past Grigor Dimitrov Saturday night to charge into the final of the Brisbane International. The 22-year-old Australian rallied from a set down for the third consecutive match to beat the World No. 3 and top seed 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 to set a showdown with American Ryan Harrison.

Earlier in the day Harrison was within two points of defeat in the second-set tie-break against 18-year-old Australian Alex De Minaur before holding his nerve to win 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-4.

Kyrgios leads his FedEx ATP Head2Head series against Harrison 2-0.

Maybe slow starts are a positive omen for Aussie Nick Kyrgios. For the third consecutive match, the third seed fell behind a set on Saturday evening at the Brisbane International presented by Suncorp.

But for the third consecutive match, Kyrgios found a way to come back, this time against defending champion Grigor Dimitrov to pick up his first win against the Bulgarian and advance to Sunday’s final, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4.

The final will be Kyrgios’ first on home soil and his seventh overall (3-3). Kyrgios is also the first Aussie to reach the Brisbane final since former World No. 1 Lleyton Hewitt in 2014 (d. Federer).

Kyrgios will face American Ryan Harrison, who beat Kyrgios’ countryman Alex de Minaur 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-4 to reach his third ATP World Tour title match (2017 Memphis, 2017 Atlanta).

Kyrgios leads their FedEx ATP Head2Head series 2-0, and Harrison has yet to take a set off the Aussie. “I know that he’s a dangerous opponent. He can serve very, very well and he’s obviously won a lot of matches here,” Kyrgios said on court.

The 22-year-old Canberra native trailed Dimitrov in their FedEx ATP Head2Head series 0-2, including a loss in last year’s Western & Southern Open final in Cincinnati, and the Bulgarian was riding a seven-match win streak heading into the Brisbane semi-final. Dimitrov started on a roll as well, breaking Kyrgios once and not facing a break point in the first set to gain the lead.

But Kyrgios swung more freely in the second set and mixed up his play against Dimitrov. The third-seeded Kyrgios exchanged rapid-fire points with Dimitrov and came out the victor more often than not. He also gave Dimitrov different return looks, and the strategy seemed to throw the World No. 3 off as Kyrgios broke twice in the second set to even the match in 29 minutes.

“I knew that I had to do something a little bit differently today. I couldn’t give him too much rhythm,” Kyrgios said.

The third set followed a similar strategy. Kyrgios dominated on serve – he finished with 19 aces and won 82 per cent of his first-serve points – and broke in the seventh game before serving out the match.

All week in Brisbane, defending champion Grigor Dimitrov and a pair of Aussie semi-finalists – 18-year-old Alex de Minaur and Nick Kyrgios – had stolen the attention during the opening week of the ATP World Tour season.

But quietly, Ryan Harrison of the U.S. had gone about his work, leading the tournament in aces and battling through a pair of early three-set contests. Now the American will go for his second ATP World Tour title in the past 11 months.

Harrison ended the fairytale run of #NextGenATP de Minaur on Saturday afternoon, coming back from a 3/5 deficit in the second-set tie-break to advance 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-3. Harrison will play in his third ATP World Tour final, all of which have come since February 2017, when the American won the Memphis Open (d. Basilashvili) for his maiden title. Last July, Harrison fell to countryman John Isner in the BB&T Atlanta Open final.

The 25-year-old will face either top seed and Brisbane doubles partner Grigor Dimitrov or the third-seeded Kyrgios in Sunday’s final. “I’m excited to be in the final. They’re both great players. I’m going to have to play really good tennis to have a shot there,” Harrison said on court.

And to think, Harrison had never won even a set in Brisbane before this week. The right-hander had gone 0-4 during his prior appearances. But a new attitude might be to thank for his early success. Harrison, who, like de Minaur, was a highly-touted teenager on the ATP World Tour, said he’s simply looking to compete in 2018 and forget about expectations.

“Coming into this year I want to leave it all on the court every time I play. I feel like if I do that I’ll be improving. I didn’t have a whole lot of pressure on myself. I was just trying to play as hard as I could and I’m in the final,” Harrison said.

De Minaur, before facing Harrison, hadn’t lost a set this week in Brisbane. The 18-year-old had captured the hearts of thousands of Aussie fans this week by beating two Top 50 players – No. 44 Steve Johnson and No. 24 Milos Raonic, along with #NextGenATP counterpart Michael Mmoh – and was the clear fan favourite to reach his maiden ATP World Tour final.

“The No. 1 thing I wanted to do was take the crowd of it. Miserable fail,” Harrison said before laughing.

Proactive play – aggressive second-serve returning and attacking the net often – had de Minaur two points away from reaching the title match. At 5/4 in the second-set tie-break, de Minaur had the contest on his racquet. But Harrison won the first point to get 5/5, and de Minaur double faulted before smacking a forehand long on set point.

The Aussie then started flat in the decider, and Harrison seized the opportunity, breaking twice to lead 5-1. He was broken while trying to serve out the match at 5-2, but Harrison recovered and held to love to reach the title match.

“The thing that I love about his game is how aggressive he is… He’s got a really bright future. It was a pleasure to play him,” Harrison said. “I was just trying to tell myself to compete as hard as I could, focus as much as I could on my side of the court. And then hope that he was going to give me a dip in level. I don’t know if he dipped in level but I think things only just worked out for me.”

Typically when Grigor Dimitrov sprints to and hurdles over the net, he’s doing it for fun – do not try it at home, kids – not because he’s scared for his opponent who has suddenly collapsed to the court. But the Bulgarian was in the latter position on Friday evening during his quarter-final match against Kyle Edmund at the Brisbane International presented by Suncorp.

The two were tied 4-4 in the third and final set when Edmund let out a shriek and fell to the ground, grasping his right ankle. Instinctively, Dimitrov raced to the net and hurdled over it, as if he had done it before, or a few times in the past.

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Sportsmanship goals by @GrigorDimitrov ?#BrisbaneTENnis pic.twitter.com/CMitSARvYN

— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) January 5, 2018

Leaning over his opponent, he consoled Edmund, grabbing his arm and seeing if he was OK. A few seconds later, Dimitrov was helping Edmund off the court and walking him to his chair, Edmund’s arm wrapped around Dimitrov’s shoulders as the crowd applauded the sportsmanship.

“It was just such an instinct for me that I didn’t think, ‘Okay, I’m just going to go around the net, or I’m going to go that post or this post’. It was just like such a natural instinct for me to go and jump over,” said Dimitrov, who also trains on track hurdles, which are of similar height to the net.

“It’s tough, obviously, what happened. Little unfortunate, that’s for sure. But, I mean, I would have reacted like this whoever I was playing against. So this is just my instinct, my reaction, to do that right away. I hope he gets better.”

An ATP World Tour trainer re-wrapped Edmund’s ankle, and play continued during the quarter-final, which Dimitrov won 6-3, 6-7(3), 6-4 after taking the final two games. In the semi-finals, the Bulgarian will face Aussie Nick Kyrgios for the third time in their FedEx ATP Head2Head series.

Edmund appreciated his opponent’s quick actions. “It’s good to have someone like that. But he’s always been like that, Grigor. He’s been a good guy on and off the court,” Edmund said.

The Brit thought the majority of ATP World Tour players would have done the same for their opponents as well.

“It’s good that someone is concerned about you, but as tennis players you generally are… Most people would have done that, but it’s nice to see him get up and help me to the chair,” Edmund said.

Edmund was also optimistic that he would be feeling fully healed in time for his next tournament, the Sydney International, which starts on Sunday.

“The ankle got extended a bit too much and that was it really,” he said. “But I’ve obviously done it twice before. This is my third time. So from the past, the next morning it’s a bit tender but then, after a day or two, it settles down. Basically, it’s just a rolled ankle. That’s what it is.”