“I don’t expect myself to do well on any tennis trivia when we are taking it back before I played!” Taylor Fritz joked in the latest edition of ATP Uncovered’s Test The Tour series. The American was one of five ATP Tour stars to be quizzed on their Nitto ATP Finals knowledge.

Former champions Andy Murray, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Daniil Medvedev were also among the panel.

“I know nothing about it!” Medvedev joked. But would the World No. 3 surprise himself as he was asked who the youngest champion in event history is, which country has the most Nitto ATP Finals titlists and more?

“I remember it! I’m kidding, I wasn’t even born then,” Tsitsipas said, while cracking a smile.

Watch the full video below to find out which of Fritz, Medvedev, Murray, Casper Ruud and Tsitsipas answered the most questions correctly.

Since reaching the US Open quarter-finals, Taylor Fritz went 2-2 on the Asian swing before heading to Europe for the Swiss Indoors Basel. On Wednesday, the American survived a stern opening test from Max Purcell to continue his chase for a spot in the Nitto ATP Finals.

Sitting ninth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin, Fritz’s bid to leapfrog Holger Rune for the crucial eighth position received a timely boost with his gritty 7-6(6), 7-6(4) win at the ATP 500.

“As far as where I’m at in the Race, I think I’m in a good spot,” Fritz said post-match. “I have a pretty decent chance if I can come up with a big result one of these next two weeks [in Basel or Paris].”

Fritz marches 🔛

The American with a 7-6 (7) 7-6(4) win over Purcell #SwissIndoorsBasel pic.twitter.com/hS5zLEFigs

— ATP Tour (@atptour) October 25, 2023

The American trailed Purcell 1/5 in the opening tie-break and saved two set points before he snatched the set with a three-point surge. He twice surrendered a break lead in set two, including an unsuccessful attempt to serve out the match at 5-4, but recovered to close out the second tie-break on his third set point.

“I was lucky to win the first set. I played some really big points really well in important moments in the tie-break,” Fritz said. “I came up pretty clutch in the first set to take it. The second set I was serving well, I was returning better, and I just kind of got in my own way and made it pretty complicated. But I was lucky to refocus and play a good tie-break.”

Fritz, who turns 27 on Saturday, improved to 22-2 in opening rounds this season with the result, including a perfect 14-0 mark on hard courts. He was out-aced 13 to 12 by Purcell, but the Aussie was made to pay for his six doubles faults, including several at crucial moments late in the second set.

Next up for Fritz is qualifier Alexander Shevchenko.

Casper Ruud also made a successful start in Basel with a 7-6(5), 6-2 win against Alexander Bublik, who lifted the Antwerp title on Sunday. Ruud is in 10th in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin and, like Fritz, is in search of a late charge to return to the Nitto ATP Finals. Fritz reached the semi-finals last year at the season finale, while Ruud enjoyed a run to the championship match.

Ruud’s win against Bublik improved him to 6-1 in the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head. The Kazakhstani is the first opponent against whom he has recorded six victories (Ruud is 5-1 against Rune and 5-0 against Roberto Carballes Baena.).

In a dramatic opening set, both Ruud and Bublik fought off three break points in their final service game before the tie-break, which the Norwegian clinched on his third set point. Bublik responded by taking a 2-0 lead in set two — despite a brilliant tweener lob from his opponent to start the set — but Ruud raced through the finish by winning six straight games.

Not everything has gone the way Cameron Norrie might like in terms of results during the 2023 ATP Tour season. Yet all players, even the very best in the world, go through tough stretches, and the Briton is not one to let a few lean months stop him believing in his own ability.

“I started the year winning [lots of] close matches, and that’s kind of how tennis goes,” Norrie, who is 36-23 for the year, told ATP Tennis Radio on Saturday at the Erste Bank Open in Vienna. “You win or lose close ones all at once, and I think it just becomes automatic. I’ve had a couple of tough losses recently, but I think that’s tennis and that’s just how you can learn from it and respond from it.”

Even if things don’t always go to plan on the court, the lifestyle and friendships Norrie enjoys on the tennis merry-go-round are more than enough to keep him positive day-to-day. The World No. 18 believes that those constants are the foundation for him to rediscover his best form.

“Luckily I have a really good team around me to push,” said Norrie, who arrived in Vienna having gone 1-6 since the US Open. “For me, I’m really still really enjoying the Tour, enjoying the travel, and going to new places still. It’s definitely been an interesting year, but I need to stay patient.”

Norrie applies his calm approach to practice as much as he does matches. The five-time ATP Tour champion believes it helps him stay positive even when he is struggling to close out wins.

“The big question is to build confidence and I think there are two ways, either on the match court or on the practice court,” said Norrie. “If you’re working as hard as you can on the practice court, trying to bring as much quality as you can, not really being too tough on yourself in the practice and really trying to stay fresh for the matches, I think that’s one way.

“Then obviously going out in the matches and the tough moments and going out and playing to win. I think a couple of times recently I was playing for the other guy to miss in the bigger moments. That was the difference, especially playing with some of the best guys in the world. The margins are so small, and I think the smallest difference can sometimes be a big difference.”

Norrie made a red-hot start to the season, and in mid-March was the owner of a 21-3 record. His highlights in those early months included beating Alex de Minaur, Rafael Nadal and Taylor Fritz at the United Cup, championship-match runs in Auckland and Buenos Aires, and defeating Carlos Alcaraz to claim his maiden ATP 500 crown in Rio de Janeiro.

Although he has struggled to match those highs since then, the 28-year-old Norrie fought hard on Monday to hold off home wild card Filip Misolic in Vienna and now faces a second-round test against the fifth-seeded Alexander Zverev. The German is the sort of top-quality player that Norrie relishes facing.

“I know I have the level,” said Norrie, who will be chasing his 11th victory against a Top 10 opponent, and his fifth of this year, on Wednesday night against Zverev. “I know I’ve got it in me to play with some of the best guys in the world and [I’ve had] some big results already.

“I think it’s how I can implement my game and play my tennis in the bigger moments. I think recently I haven’t done that. I think there’s obviously a lot of new younger players coming up. They’re playing well, they’re playing fearlessly, and that’s something to learn from those boys… I know how to play, and I just need to compete as hard as I can. I think I’m one of the best competitors in the world when I’m at my highest, so knowing I’ve got that in my back pocket is always nice.”

The schedule for the 2024 United Cup in Perth and Sydney has been released.

PERTH GROUP PLAY – RAC ARENA

PERTH QUARTER-FINALS

SYDNEY GROUP PLAY – KEN ROSEWALL ARENA

SYDNEY QUARTER-FINALS

SYDNEY SEMI-FINALS

SYDNEY FINAL

Note: Order of ATP/WTA matches will vary. Mixed doubles will always be the third match. Players subject to change.

View Groups At Official Website

Sporting Rivals To Clash On Day 1 Of United Cup

Australia will play Great Britain on the opening day of the 2024 United Cup, the innovative mixed team event beginning 29 December at RAC Arena in Perth.

World No.13 Alex de Minaur will line up alongside Ajla Tomljanovic, John Millman, Storm Hunter, Matt Ebden and Ellen Perez when they face the British team led by Cameron Norrie and Katie Boulter.

The group stage will begin in Sydney on Saturday 30 December.

Each tie will comprise one men’s singles and one women’s singles match followed by one mixed doubles match.

Singles matches are best of three tiebreak sets. Mixed doubles matches are two tiebreak sets with a deciding match tiebreak (10 point) at one set-all.

In Perth, the day session will start at 10.00am and 5.00pm local time for the night session.

In Sydney, the day session will begin at 10.30am and 5.30pm for the second session.

Tickets to the group stage and quarterfinals go on sale 5.00pm local time today, Wednesday 25 October via UnitedCup.com/tickets.

Adult prices start from $40 and from $20 for children 3-12 years of age. Family passes (two adults and two children) start from $100.

Perth
Top seeds Poland featuring world No.2 Iga Swiatek and [11] Hubert Hurkacz will make their debut in Perth against a yet-to-be confirmed team on Saturday 30 December.

World No.1 Novak Djokovic and Team Serbia will take to the court on New Year’s Eve against China’s [18] Qinwen Zheng and Zhizhen Zhang.

Sydney
At Ken Rosewall Arena, [8] Casper Ruud’s Team Norway will face the Netherlands on Saturday 30 December followed by Team Germany – led by Grand Slam champion Angelique Kerber and Alexander Zverev – against Italy at night.

Canada, featuring Felix Auger-Aliassime and Leylah Fernandez, will make their United Cup debut on Sunday 31 December.

No.2 seeds Greece with [7] Stefanos Tsitsipas and [9] Maria Sakkari will play their first tie in Sydney on Tuesday 2 January.

Showcasing equality at the highest level of the sport, the United Cup will feature 18 countries competing across Perth and Sydney from Friday 29 December to Sunday 7 January 2024.

An ATP-WTA event presented in partnership with Tennis Australia, the United Cup offers a minimum AUD $15 million in prize money and 500 Pepperstone ATP and 500 WTA Tour rankings points.

Each city will host three groups of three countries, competing in a round-robin format.

Group winners in each city advance to the quarterfinals, with one quarterfinal spot in each city awarded to the best runner-up in that city.

In Perth, the quarterfinals will be played on Wednesday 3 January and in Sydney, the quarterfinals will be played across Thursday 4 and Friday 5 January.

Winners will progress to the semifinals and finals at Ken Rosewall Arena in Sydney on Saturday 6 and Sunday 7 January.

Teams travelling from Perth to Sydney will have a travel day and rest day before their semifinal.

The final two remaining countries (one WTA and one ATP) will be admitted to the competition on Monday 20 November, based on the rankings published on this date.

One year ago, Ben Shelton was No. 158 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings and competing in a stretch of ATP Challenger Tour events. At the time, the American had earned just three tour-level wins and was embarking on his life as a professional tennis player.

Little did the lefty know that one year later, he would be No. 15 in the world and competing with the biggest stars on the ATP Tour every week.

“I think that’s the craziest thing to think about, how far I’ve come,” Shelton told ATPTour.com. “But it’s interesting that a lot of guys who where in a similar position to me last year, like Chris Eubanks or Aleks Vukic, have kind of had the same trajectory.

“They’re Top 50 now, so to be playing Challengers with all those guys last year and now we are at the point where we are playing a full ATP schedule, it’s something really cool that we share.” 

Shelton is 26-22 this season and has consistently risen to the occasion on the biggest stages. He reached the semi-finals of the US Open, the quarter-finals of the Australian Open and last week at the ATP 500 in Tokyo claimed his first tour-level title.

Two years ago Shelton was outside the world’s Top 700, a year ago he had not yet cracked the Top 150, and now he is charging towards the Top 10.

“It’s definitely not sunk in yet,” Shelton told ATPTour.com. “I think that when my season is over, I’ll have some time to think about everything that’s happened this year and kind of reflect on it. I’m just really enjoying the moment right now.” 

Entering the end of the season, there was potential pressure for Shelton with the 240 points he earned in a three-week span last year, when he triumphed at Challengers in Charlottesville, Knoxville and Champaign. But by claiming 500 points in a single week in Tokyo, Shelton has put those worries behind him.

The American has made the biggest climb over the past 12 months of any player in the Top 20, ascending 143 spots. The only player who is close to him is World No. 20 Nicolas Jarry, who was No. 116 one year ago this week.

Shelton will try to continue his rise this week at the Erste Bank Open in Vienna, where he will play second seed Jannik Sinner in the first round.

Stefanos Tsitsipas spoiled the party for the local fans Tuesday at the Erste Bank Open by delivering a rock-solid opening-round display to down home favourite Dominic Thiem.

The fourth-seeded Greek prevailed 7-6(5), 6-4 after saving all three break points he faced at the ATP 500 in Vienna. Tsitsipas clinched a first set of narrow margins by rallying from 2/4 in the tie-break before a decisive break in the third game of the second set proved enough for him to book a second-round clash with Tomas Machac.

“He made it difficult, as always. Every single match that we have played this year has been on the edge, and it wouldn’t be any different this time,” said Tsitsipas. “I really had to come up with some good shots towards the end and there were some extraordinary rallies that were being played during the course of the match.

“It was very physical and I had to stay very composed. Especially in the second set, he really stepped up his game, but I didn’t give him that break that he was looking for.”

With his one-hour, 59-minute win, Tsitsipas strengthened his bid to secure a spot at the season-ending Nitto ATP Finals. The 25-year-old is currently sixth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin, having amassed a 46-20 record in 2023.

Tsitsipas and Thiem’s two previous Lexus Head2Head meetings this season had both been settled in deciding-set tie-breaks. Tuesday’s clash in Vienna initially looked like being an equally tight affair, as the two players lit up the Wiener Stadthalle with a series of blistering baseline exchanges. Tsitsipas’ ability to find big serves when he needed ultimately proved crucial, however, especially when he fended off three break points to hold for 1-1 in the second set.

Now 6-5 ahead in his Lexus ATP Head2Head rivalry with Thiem, Tsitsipas has not lost in the opening round of an indoor event dating back to the 2021 Rolex Paris Masters. The Greek has struggled for his best level of late but could identify Tuesday’s win as a turning point as he chases his second tour-level title of the season in the Austrian capital.

Qualifier Machac earlier overcame Aleksandar Vukic 6-3, 6-1 to improve to 7-7 at tour-level for the season. The Czech is now up 11 spots to No. 63 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings, setting him up for a new career-high in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings next Monday.

In the final match of the day in Vienna, Grigor Dimitrov improved to 20-2 for opening rounds this season by defeating Lorenzo Musetti 6-3, 6-4. Dimitrov, a semi-finalist in the Austrian capital a year ago, won 80 per cent (33/41) of points behind his first serve en route to an impressive 94-minute win.

The Bulgarian is now 36-19 for 2023, a year in which he has consistently forged deep runs at ATP Tour events, including a championship-match run in Geneva. His next test this week will be a clash against Daniil Medvedev or #NextGenATP Arthur Fils. It was Medvedev who downed Dimitrov in the last four in Vienna a year ago.

Can one win change the course of a season?

Holger Rune will be hoping that is the case after he earned just his second victory in nine matches on Tuesday to reach the second round at the Swiss Indoors Basel, boosting his Nitto ATP Finals qualification chances.

The Dane battled hard to claw past Serbian Miomir Kecmanovic 1-6, 7-5, 6-3 at the ATP 500 event in Switzerland, where he rallied from a set and a break down to triumph after two hours and two minutes. Rune trailed 3-4 in the second set but broke back before sealing the set on his third set point. He did not face a break point in the third set, striking 12 winners in the decider.

The Great Dane completes the great escape 🇩🇰

The 2022 runner-up @holgerrune2003 comes back from a set and a break down in the third set 🆚️ Kecmanovic 1-6 7-5 6-3 #SwissIndoorsBasel pic.twitter.com/Pg0bscwdfI

— ATP Tour (@atptour) October 24, 2023

With his victory, he set a second-round meeting against Sebastian Baez, while he also increased his Nitto ATP Finals qualification chances. The 20-year-old is eighth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin, 90 points ahead of ninth-placed Taylor Fritz. Aiming to make his debut at the prestigious year-end event, Rune is currently occupying the final qualification position.

“I am happy I kept fighting and turned the match around,” Rune said. “I tried to raise my level. I always enjoy playing here.”

The top seed enjoyed a strong first half of the season. He lifted the trophy in Munich, reached the final in Rome and the quarter-finals at Roland Garros and Wimbledon. However, he has struggled to find any form since Wimbledon in July, arriving in Basel having lost seven of his past eight matches.

Rune would not be deterred against Kecmanovic though, earning his 39th tour-level win of the season, equalling his previous best mark (2022).

In the final match of the day on centre court, Alexander Shevchenko ousted home hero Stan Wawrinka 6-3, 7-6(8). The qualifier was clutch on the most critical points, saving three of the four break points he faced while converting three of his five opportunities.

Shevchenko lost a set in the first round of qualifying against Fabio Fognini, but has won five consecutive sets to reach the second round of the main draw.

“It ranks unbelievable, especially to beat Stan in Basel,” Shevchenko said of his victory. “When I was having a family dinner [as a kid], Stan was playing the Australian Open final and I remember how he played. And to beat him in Basel is something that I dreamed of, maybe.”

Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek bounced back from a disappointing first-round exit in Shanghai on Tuesday when they beat Felix Auger-Aliassime and Sebastian Korda 6-2, 6-4 at the Swiss Indoors Basel.

The top seeds are chasing their sixth tour-level title as a team this week and will next play Tallon Griekspoor and Robin Haase or Hugo Nys and Jan Zielinski. Dodig and Krajicek will compete at the Nitto ATP Finals in November after qualifying earlier this month.

Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni are currently fifth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Doubles Teams Rankings and are looking to join Dodig and Krajicek in Turin. They suffered a first-round loss in Basel, falling to Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz. The Germans advanced 6-2, 5-7, 10-5 in one hour and 38 minutes.

Ofner/Oswald Save 2 MPs, Advance In Vienna
Austrians Sebastian Ofner and Philipp Oswald defeated defending champions Alexander Erler and Lucas Miedler 7-6(4), 4-6, 11-9 in the first round at the Erste Bank Open in Vienna. Ofner and Oswald saved two match points, eventually advancing after one hour and 47 minutes.

Cameron Norrie and Tommy Paul also reached the second round at the ATP 500, beating Gonzalo Escobar and Aleksandr Nedovyesov 6-3, 6-0.

After a standout collegiate career, Cypriot Menelaos Efstathiou will now try his hand at the pro level.

The 24-year-old is set to compete in his first ATP Challenger Tour event this week at the Sparkasse Challenger Val Gardena in Ortisei, Italy. Efstathiou graduated this year from Wake Forest University, where he became just the second player from his school to earn Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year honours, joining Noah Rubin.

After finishing seventh in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Rankings, Efstathiou will receive up to eight spots at select ATP Challenger Tour events in the next year, including in Ortisei, thanks to the ATP/ITA Accelerator Programme. The goal of the programme is to become a launching pad for the top players within the American collegiate system and accelerate their journey to the pro level.

The college route is one that Efstathiou will forever cherish.

“College tennis is amazing. I improved my game overall, but I would say more, I became more mature over the last five years,” Efstathiou told ATPTour.com earlier this year. “The level is very high so you always compete with good players, it definitely helped me improve my maturity and raise my level.”

How does a native of Limassol, Cyprus make the move to Winston-Salem, North Carolina? In large part because of his countryman Petros Chrysochos paving the pathway. Chrysochos, 27, won the 2018 NCAA singles title at Wake Forest and was a senior when Efstathiou started his college career.

“We’re good friends, we’re from the same academy. He put me in contact with the coaches and all that so it was kind of easy for me to choose Wake because of him,” Efstathiou said. “He was doing so well and he was telling me how good the program is. It was a pretty easy decision for me.”

Under the tutelage of head coach Tony Bresky, Wake Forest has produced a list of high-level players, including current World No. 77 Borna Gojo. The three-time ITA All-American Gojo was part of the Demon Deacons squad to capture the 2018 NCAA National Championship, the first in program history. The Croatian later turned pro in 2020 following three years at Wake Forest and is serving as an inspiration to Demon Deacons such as Efstathiou.

“We were on the team together,” Efstathiou said. “You could see how he was doing so well in college and still was very competitive. That kind of translates into playing well on the ATP Tour and he’s doing well, so it’s an inspiration for me as well to go and see what I can do.”

Before Efstathiou arrived at Wake Forest, he was already familiar with playing in a team atmosphere. At age 17, he made his Davis Cup debut against Türkiye. Several months later, he would return to the squad against Tunisia alongside former World No. 8 Marcos Baghdatis.

“With Baghdatis, we’re from the same city in Cyprus, we sometimes used to practise together,” Efstathiou said. “When I started my first [Davis Cup], he was there. We have pretty good contact with each other. Whenever we practise together, he gives me good tips here and there. It’s for sure beneficial towards me.”

Following the Ortisei Challenger, Efstathiou will use another Accelerator spot at the Bergamo Challenger, where he is among the qualifying field.

Hubert Hurkacz recorded his 40th tour-level win of the season on Tuesday when he moved past Serbian Dusan Lajovic 7-6(2), 6-3 to reach the second round on his debut at the Swiss Indoors Basel.

The 26-year-old fired 18 aces, won 80 per cent (41/51) of his first-serve points and broke Lajovic’s serve three times to become the first Polish man to earn 40 tour-level wins in consecutive years since Wojtek Fibak in 1981-82.

With his victory, Hurkacz has boosted his Nitto ATP Finals qualification hopes. The Pole is currently 11th in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin, 300 points behind Holger Rune, who occupies the final qualification spot in eighth.

Earlier this month Hurkacz moved himself into qualification contention for the prestigious year-end event when he won his second ATP Masters 1000 crown in Shanghai, gaining 1,000 points.

Aiming to close the gap to those above him this week at the ATP 500 event in Basel, Hurkacz will next play German Jan-Lennard Struff.

A touch of brilliance at the net: Part 2️⃣

Guess that’s one way to save a break point @HubertHurkacz 🤷‍♂️#SwissIndoorsBasel pic.twitter.com/CiFb1SsyFi

— ATP Tour (@atptour) October 24, 2023

Alex de Minaur is also aiming to compete at the Nitto ATP Finals, to be held from 12-19th November. The Australian increased his slim chances with a 6-4, 6-4 win against Diego Schwartzman to improve to 3-0 in the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series.

De Minaur, who also defeated Schwartzman in Tokyo last week, is 12th in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin, 190 points behind 11th-placed Hurkacz. The 24-year-old could rise to 10th this week if he wins his second title of the season and his direct rivals fall early.

De Minaur next plays Tallon Griekspoor after the Dutchman beat Brazilian lucky loser Thiago Seyboth Wild 7-6(4), 2-6, 6-3.

Earlier, #NextGenATP Swiss Dominic Stricker maintained his impressive form on home soil when he defeated qualifier Benjamin Hassan 7-6(2), 6-2.

The 21-year-old owns a 5-1 record in first-round tour-level matches in Switzerland, having defeated Maxime Cressy in his opening match at the ATP 500 last year. He will next meet second seed Casper Ruud or Antwerp champion Alexander Bublik.

Stricker, who advanced to the fourth round at the US Open, is up one place to seventh in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Jeddah. The lefty is trying to qualify for the Next Gen ATP Finals for the second consecutive year, after reaching the semi-finals in 2022.