Tomas Berdych moved to within 330 points of Rafael Nadal in the Emirates ATP Race To London as he won his first ATP World Tour title of the season at the Shenzhen Open.

In his 15th meeting with Richard Gasquet, defending champion Berdych retained his title with a 7-6(5), 6-7(2), 6-3 victory in the final on Sunday.

Berdych is currently ninth in the year-to-date standings, with the top eight at the end of the regular season set to qualify for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals. Berdych has played at the prestigious season finale in London the past six years.

After being forced to miss the US Open due to appendicitis, Berdych has hit top form quickly on his return to action, reaching the semi-finals in St. Petersburg last year (l. to Zverev).

“Five weeks ago I was in hospital, now I’m sitting here with the trophy,” said Berdych. “Things are changing very quickly. Luckily for me, everything is going well, I’m feeling good, sitting here as a winner. I’m just taking all this as a bonus, that I can play and win some matches.”

The 31-year-old Berdych lifted his first ATP World Tour trophy since triumphing at the If Stockholm Open almost one year ago. The Czech improved to a 13-17 record in tour-level finals. Four of Berdych’s titles have come in Asia (2008 Tokyo, 2011 Beijing, 2015-16 Shenzhen).

In the fourth all-30 and over final on the ATP World Tour this season, Berdych improved to an 8-7 mark over Gasquet in their FedEx ATP Head2Head series as he claimed victory in two hours and 40 minutes. Berdych is the 18th 30-and-over winner on the ATP World Tour this season.

The top seed lost serve in the first game of the match, but immediately struck back to draw level with Gasquet. In the eventual tie-break, Berdych clinched the opener on his first set point.

A break in the third game gave Berdych an early lead in the second set. But he was denied on two match points as Gasquet held serve in the ninth game and then saw his lead snuffed out as the Frenchman staged a late fight back with a break of serve to love as Berdych served for the match. Gasquet then took the match into a decider as he dominated the tie-break.

Berdych regrouped in the third set, though. The Czech broke through in the sixth game for a 4-2 lead and did not falter when serving for the match a second time, closing out the final game to 15.

“I think it was a very solid game,” said Berdych. “I said after the semi-final that I wanted to raise my game and play better and I think I achieved that against a tougher opponent. I’m very pleased with the way I played.

“The two match points [in the second set] were very tough. He served aces so I couldn’t do anything about that. He started playing very well and deserved to win the second set. I had to battle for the win and sometimes that happens.”

Berdych will now look to make up more ground on Nadal in the Emirates ATP Race To London when he competes at the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships 2016, an ATP World Tour 500 hard court tournament in Tokyo next week. Nadal is the second seed at the China Open in Beijing.

Third seed Richard Gasquet was looking to win his second ATP World Tour title of the season, following victory in Montpellier in February (d. Mathieu). The Frenchman falls to a 13-13 finals record on the ATP World Tour.

Two consecutive weeks on the ATP World Tour has yielded back-to-back titles for the fast-charging #NextGen contingent, as Karen Khachanov clinched his first title on Sunday at the Chengdu Open.

The 20-year-old Russian is projected to soar nearly 50 spots in the Emirates ATP Rankings to a career-high No. 55, after rallying past Spain’s Albert Ramos-Vinolas 6-7(4), 7-6(3), 6-3 in Chengdu. Khachanov, who follows in the footsteps of German teen Alexander Zverev, last week’s champion in St. Petersburg, as first-time #NextGen winners. He is the third in total this year, with Nick Kyrgios prevailing in both Marseille and Atlanta.

With his arms raised in triumph after two hours and 39 minutes, Khachanov secured the title when a Ramos-Vinolas forehand sailed long. The Galo Blanco pupil fired 14 aces, while converting three of nine break chances. It marks his fourth victory over a seeded opponent this week, having toppled No. 7 Joao Sousa, No. 4 Feliciano Lopez in the quarter-finals and No. 6 Viktor Troicki on Saturday.

More to come…

Gael Monfils, the No. 2 seed at the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships 2016, is a hit wherever he goes. The flashy Frenchman believes that his fan appeal originates from the sincerity with which he approaches the sport.

“I’m a very natural person on the court. I try to be myself and forget about the pressure,” Monfils said. “Some may think that I am really trying to be entertaining, but for me that’s just the way that I enjoy playing the game. I’m happy to see that people like the way I play and that I help them have fun.”

The 30 year old’s charm has won him many fans in Tokyo, where he reached the semi-finals twice in three past appearances. Monfils made the semi-finals in 2009 (l. to Tsonga) and reached the final in 2010, falling to Rafael Nadal. Back for the first time since 2013, Monfils revealed that he has been approaching his physical preparation differently in recent years in order to gain an edge.

“My physio Gaetan and I have been working together since 2014, and over that time he has done a lot to give me the right tools to stay healthy and to recover between matches,” said Monfils. “We use a lot of Chinese medicine; we do acupuncture. I am not afraid of the needles, as I have many tattoos.”

Continued enthusiasm for tennis and improved health may well help Monfils qualify for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals for the first time. The Frenchman is currently in sixth place in the Emirates ATP Race To London, 150 points clear of seventh-placed Dominic Thiem and trailing Tokyo top seed Kei Nishikori by 960 points.

“It’s not something that I am really thinking about yet,” Monfils said. “My objective right now is just to finish the season well and to win another title. If that helps me qualify for London, then it would be great. But my priority is to find a good level and to perform well at the events I play at.”

Monfils will face Japan’s Yuichi Sugita in the first round.

It was one of the more riveting matches of the year: a five-set thriller between Rafael Nadal and Lucas Pouille less than a month ago at the US Open. Ready for an encore?

The second-seeded Spaniard and sixth-seeded Frenchman are on a collision course for a quarter-final rematch at next week’s China Open. Nadal must go through Paolo Lorenzi, followed by either Albert Ramos-Vinolas or a qualifier for his potential shot at revenge. Pouille, who prevailed in a dramatic deciding tie-break, enters in top form after lifting his first ATP World Tour trophy at the Moselle Open in Metz. He opens against wild card Yen-Hsun Lu.

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The potential encounter could have significant implications in both players’ bids to qualify for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals. Nadal, the 2005 Beijing titlist (d. Coria), is 18-4 at the ATP World Tour 500 event and will be seeking to boost his standing in the Emirates ATP Race To London. The 30 year old, who is eyeing his first hard-court crown since 2014 Doha, is currently in eighth position, with Tomas Berdych, finalist at this week’s Shenzhen Open, nipping at his heels. Pouille, meanwhile, is in 13th position. The top eight players will appear at The O2 in London from 13-20 November.

Nadal also finished runner-up to Novak Djokovic in both 2013 & ’15 in Beijing and while the six-time champion Serbian withdrew with an elbow injury, the tournament features a strong field. Top seed Andy Murray, a semi-finalist in 2014, leads the charge. The Scot is seeking to add to his collection of titles on Chinese soil, having won at the Shanghai Rolex Masters in 2010 & ’11 and in Shenzhen in 2014. He opens against Italy’s Andreas Seppi, with Dominic Thiem, David Ferrer, Roberto Bautista Agut and #NextGen star Alexander Zverev also lurking in his half of the draw. Meeting for the fourth time this year, Thiem and Zverev are set for a blockbuster opening-round clash. The Austrian is seventh in the Emirates ATP Race To London.

Another enticing first-round match-up features a surging Florian Mayer looking to topple third seed Milos Raonic. The Canadian is in search of his second Asian Swing crown, having lifted the trophy in Bangkok in 2013. Also a finalist in Tokyo from 2012-14, Raonic is making his second appearance in Beijing and could face Nadal or Pouille in the semis.

The lone home hope in the draw is wild card Zhang Ze, who will open against American Jack Sock.

Tomas Berdych took a significant step in his quest to qualify for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals for a seventh consecutive year, downing Thomaz Bellucci 6-2, 7-5 in the Shenzhen Open semi-finals. He will face off against Richard Gasquet for the title.

Defending champion Berdych needed one hour and 22 minutes to dispatch his Brazilian opponent, securing his place in the Shenzhen final once again. He fired nine aces and claimed an impressive 88 per cent first serve points, while converting four of 10 break chances.

“It’s always a pleasure to play in front of a full stadium here,” said Berdych. “Today it was a great atmosphere and a great time to be on the court. I like the courts and the conditions and once you get a good result, it’s a place you want to come back to.”

“I was struggling physically the past few weeks, so it’s nice to be playing some matches and tomorrow I will have a chance to go for the title. Things are going well.”

Berdych, who claimed the inaugural edition of the ATP World Tour 250 event last year (d. Garcia-Lopez), currently resides at No. 9 in the Emirates ATP Race To London. The Czech is less than 500 points behind Rafael Nadal for the coveted eighth and final spot. A title would move him to just 330 points back.

Bellucci, who was appearing in his first ATP World Tour semi-final on hard courts in four years, would not go down quietly with his back against the wall on Saturday. With Berdych serving for the match at 5-3 in the second set, the Brazilian broke to love and drew level a game later. But the Czech would claim a break to love of his own in the 12th game, sealing the victory on his first match point.

Berdych extends his FedEx ATP Head2Head edge over Bellucci to 4-1, advancing to his 30th tour-level final and first of the year. His most recent title match had come on the indoor hard courts of Stockholm (d. Sock) nearly one year ago. Deadlocked at seven wins apiece in their rivalry, he faces a familiar opponent in Gasquet on Sunday. The Czech took their lone encounter of 2016, at the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event in Miami.

Albert Ramos-Vinolas backed up his victory over top seed Dominic Thiem by advancing to his first ATP World Tour hard-court final at the Chengdu Open on Saturday.

The fifth-seeded Spaniard ousted third seed Grigor Dimitrov 7-6(6), 1-6, 7-6(3) in a titanic tussle lasting just under three hours. He will now face #NextGen star Karen Khachanov in the final.

Ramos-Vinolas is currently at a career-high No. 31 in the Emirates ATP Rankings and poised to crack the Top 30 after reaching his third ATP World Tour final. After finishing runner-up in the Casablanca final four years ago (l. to Andujar), Ramos-Vinolas lifted his first trophy earlier this year on clay in Bastad, defeating Fernando Verdasco.

“The match was tough, it was almost three hours,” said Ramos-Vinolas. “I’m very happy because I beat a great player. He will be one of the best in a few years. It is another final for me tomorrow and I cannot be more happy. I was a little tired after the first set so I maybe needed some time to recover and I did a little bit (in the second). I think the third set was physically very, very tough. I kept on fighting and that’s why I am very happy because it was very difficult to win.” 

Now with a career-best 30 match wins in 2016 (30-25), the 28-year-old Ramos Vinolas is set to finish in the Top 50 for the first time.

It was a rollercoaster of a ride for Ramos-Vinolas against Dimitrov, whom he had lost to in their two previous contests. The left-hander saved three set points as he rallied from 3-6 down in the first-set tie-break to clinch the opener. Dimitrov took charge of the second set, breaking three times and losing just one point on serve as he levelled the match.

However, after saving five break points in the second game of the decider to halt Dimitrov’s run of games, Ramos-Vinolas immediately broke in the following game and opened up a 3-1 lead. Dimitrov fought back as Ramos-Vinolas served for the match, breaking in the 10th game and forcing a tie-break, but the Spaniard dominated and converted his third match point.

Dimitrov is on the cusp of returning to the Top 20 after falling to No. 40 in the Emirates ATP Rankings on 18 July, his lowest position in more than three years. Since joining forces with Dani Vallverdu over the summer, the Bulgarian has enjoyed a resurgence in form, highlighted by reaching the semi-finals in Cincinnati (l. to Cilic).

Aussie #NextGen star Nick Kyrgios made the most of his time at the Chengdu Open by visiting one of its main attractions on Saturday – the Cube Oceanarium.

Located just five minutes from the Sichuan International Tennis Centre, at The Seaside City Shopping Mall, the Cube Oceanarium is the largest ocean viewing window in the world. It houses over 33,000 ocean creatures across seven themed zones, including one exclusive to jellyfish, which showcase the biggest jellyfish in the world.

“I saw some sharks and stingrays and some jellyfish – those are probably the coolest things around,” said Kyrgios. “I spent some time filming some iguanas as well. I like going to aquariums. I’ve been to one in Paris as well but this is nicer. It’s good for me to get out of my hotel room and do stuff like this because it’s important to have a good balance.”

Despite falling to Kevin Anderson in his Chengdu opener, Kyrgios is in prime position to make a late-season run up the Emirates ATP Rankings. The World No. 15 will next appear at the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships 2016, where he is seeded sixth.