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Estrella Burgos Set For Title Defence

  • Posted: Feb 07, 2016

Estrella Burgos Set For Title Defence

Feb062016

Dominican a win away from second straight Quito crown

Victor Estrella Burgos is a win away from successfully defending his Quito title. The 2015 champion advanced to his second ATP World Tour final after dismissing Albert Ramos-Vinolas 6-2, 7-6(5) in 84 minutes. The 35 year-old, who won his first ATP World Tour title in Quito 12 months ago, only dropped three points on his first serve (27/30) and closed out the win on his first match point.

Estrella Burgos started the year with opening-round losses in Auckland and at the Australian Open, but found his rhythm on familiar grounds, improving to 9-0 in Quito. He is undefeated against his final opponent Thomaz Bellucci, winning 7-6(5), 7-5 in last year’s Quito semi-final and prevailing in their lone ATP Challenger Tour meeting (Bogota 2013).

“I’ve been feeling very well in Quito,” Estrella Burgos said. “The altitude and surface benefits me. I’m happy to have qualified to the final and I’ll try to win the title again. In these circumstances I will always feel like the favourite.

 

“Thomaz is a strong opponent, but not impossible to beat. He has good serve and good forehand. It will be an intense match because we are both warriors and we will give our best. I’ll have to serve well and take control with my forehand if I want to win. If I do that, I can beat anyone.” 

In the other semi-final, third seed Bellucci improved his record at the Ecuador Open Quito to 6-1 with a 3-6, 6-2, 6-3 win over Pablo Lorenzi in the first semi-final on Saturday. The 28-year-old will play for his fifth ATP World Tour title on Sunday against Estrella Burgos in a rematch of last year’s semi-final match, which Estrella Burgos won 7-6(5), 7-5.

Bellucci came into the match trailing Lorenzi 0-2 in the pair’s FedEx ATP Head2Head rivalry. He dropped serve twice to fall behind one set to love, but saved the next three break points faced and fought back to capture his first tour-level win against Lorenzi in just under two hours.

The No. 35 in the Emirates ATP Rankings is through to his seventh tour-level final (4-2). His last title came in May 2015 on the clay of Geneva (d. Cuevas). The Brazilian finished runner-up in the doubles draw alongside Marcelo Demoliner after losing to Pablo Carreno-Busta and Guillermo Duran in the final.

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Player Pets

  • Posted: Feb 07, 2016

Player Pets

Feb062016

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Mathieu, Gasquet Set All-French Final In Montpellier

  • Posted: Feb 06, 2016

Mathieu, Gasquet Set All-French Final In Montpellier

Feb062016

Frenchmen to square off in first all-countrymen final of 2016

For the second straight year, Paul-Henri Mathieu is in an ATP World Tour final, advancing to the Open Sud de France title match with a gritty 7-6(11), 7-5 victory over Alexander Zverev at The Parks & Suites Arena in Montpellier. Mathieu will face countryman and top seed Richard Gasquet on Sunday.

“I’m very happy with the win today,” said Mathieu. “It’s a great satisfaction to be in a final again. The last was in Kitzbuhel. To make another one in a couple of months is great for my confidence. Hopefully I will win tomorrow.” 

The 34-year-old Mathieu downed 18-year-old Zverev in one hour and 55 minutes, claiming three of four break chances and firing 40 winners. After Zverev stormed back from a 0-3 deficit, the first set came down to a riveting tie-break, which featured 24 points. Mathieu would deny three set points and converted on his fourth as a Zverev mid-rally forehand found the net.

In the second set, the German would save a match point with Mathieu serving for it at 5-4, breaking to draw level. But the Frenchman would break back immediately to 15 with a backhand winner and closed out the match in the following game.

Mathieu advanced to his 10th ATP World Tour final and first since reaching the title match in Kitzbuhel last year as a qualifier (l. to Kohlschreiber). He exacted revenge on Zverev after the teenager prevailed in the final of the ATP Challenger Tour event on home soil in Braunschweig in 2014. The German was bidding to reach his first ATP World Tour final and join Borna Coric (Chennai) as teen finalists this year.

Gasquet, meanwhile, became the eighth active player to reach 25 tour-level finals and just the second Frenchman to do so in the Open Era (Yannick Noah), after turning in arguably the comeback of the year thus far. He prevailed 1-6, 6-4, 6-3 over Dustin Brown in one hour and 39 minutes, overcoming 17 aces by the German. Brown burst out of the gates, claiming nine of the first 10 games in 35 minutes, striking 27 winners. But as quickly as he surged ahead, Gasquet snatched the momentum in his corner, rallying from a 6-1, 3-0 deficit with a run of nine of the next 11 games to take the lead for good.

“I’m happy to fight a lot and I am happy to come back here to the final,” said Gasquet. “It was a great match for me to win.” 

The top seed and defending champion will feature in a fourth straight Montpellier final. He previously won the title in 2006 (d. Gicquel), ’13 (d. Paire) and ’15 (d. Janowicz). Gasquet and Mathieu will face off for the eighth time in their FedEx ATP Head2Head rivalry, with the former owning a 5-2 edge. It will be the first all-countrymen final on the ATP World Tour this year. There were four in 2015, including two with a pair of Frenchmen.

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GB lose Fed Cup promotion play-off

  • Posted: Feb 06, 2016

Great Britain’s hopes of earning promotion in the Fed Cup ended after Katie Swan and Heather Watson both lost against Belgium.

Swan, 16, was beaten 6-3 3-6 6-3 by Ysaline Bonaventure in the opening rubber of the best-of-three tie.

Watson, 23, then lost 6-4 3-6 6-4 to Alison van Uytvanck as Belgium took an unassailable 2-0 lead in the Group 1 promotion play-off in Eilat, Israel.

The doubles match later will have no bearing on the overall outcome.

Judy Murray’s squad beat South Africa and Georgia this week to reach the Group 1 play-off.

Both British players were ranked lower than their opponents, with Swan the world number 524 and Bonaventure at 160, while Watson is 42 places below Van Uytvanck at 85 in the rankings.

GB were without world number 28 and Australian Open quarter-finalist Johanna Konta, who withdrew with illness, and Naomi Broady, whose family has a long-running dispute with the Lawn Tennis Association.

Former British number one Laura Robson was not considered as she is in the early stages of her latest comeback from wrist injuries.

Fed Cup Format
Britain are in Europe/Africa Group 1 – a 14-team group divided into four pools that is played out once a year over a week. Two teams qualify for a World Group II play-off in April, two teams are relegated to Europe/Africa Zone Group II.
World Group II is an eight-team division played out over home or away ties – GB have not played a home tie since 1993.

The defeat against Belgium means GB miss out on a World Group II play-off in April, and the possibility of a first home tie for Britain’s women since 1993.

International Tennis Federation president David Haggerty says his organisation is reviewing the format of the Fed Cup.

He said: “The ITF and our Fed Cup committee are continuing to look at potential enhancements to the Fed Cup.

“The competition has benefited from the home-and-away knock-out format that has been so successful in the Davis Cup, and the ITF is looking at new formats that would allow a 16-team World Group, something that is favoured by many of our constituents.”

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Lorenzi Upsets Tomic In Quito

  • Posted: Feb 06, 2016

Lorenzi Upsets Tomic In Quito

Feb052016

Italian serves big en route to quarter-final win

Sixth seed Paolo Lorenzi hit 25 aces to eliminate top seed Bernard Tomic 6-7(5), 7-5, 6-3 in the quarter-finals of the Ecuador Quito Open on Friday. The Italian, appearing in his seventh ATP World Tour quarter-final on clay, used his experience to down Tomic (0-1 in clay QFs) in just over two hours. Lorenzi was propelled to victory by a strong serving performance. The World No. 59 won 91 per cent of first serve points against the Australian.

Facing Lorenzi in the semi-finals will be third seed Thomaz Bellucci, a 7-6(0), 4-6, 6-2 winner over Pablo Carreno Busta. The Brazilian, who has four career ATP World Tour clay-court titles, will appear in his first semi-final of the year.

Lorenzi holds a 2-0 edge in the FedEx ATP Head2Head rivalry against Bellucci, with both wins coming on clay (2015 Buenos Aires and 2011 Rome). Bellucci took the pair’s lone ATP Challenger Tour meeting in a third-set tie-break against the Italian in 2013. That victory came in the quarter-finals of the Bogota Challenger on clay, in high-altitude conditions.

Defending champion Victor Estrella Burgos overcame stiff resistance from Renzo Olivo to win 6-4, 6-7(5), 6-4. The Dominican, seeded fifth, won 101 points to his opponent’s 99 in the two-hour, 15-minute encounter. He is attempting to become the third player after Stan Wawrinka (Chennai) and Novak Djokovic (Australian Open) to successfully defend his title in 2016.

In the semi-finals, the Dominican will face Albert Ramos-Vinolas, who was up 7-5, 4-3 when Feliciano Lopez retired. Ramos-Vinolas was in the hospital on Wednesday due to illness and had to withdraw from doubles, but recovered to make the final four. Lopez was bidding for a 400th tour-level victory.

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Swan wins again as Britain top group

  • Posted: Feb 05, 2016

Teenager Katie Swan upset world number 327 Ekaterine Gorgodze as Great Britain beat Georgia 2-1 to set up a Fed Cup promotion play-off on Saturday.

Swan, Britain’s youngest ever Fed Cup player at 16 years old, won 6-3 6-3 in the opening contest of the best-of-three tie in Eilat, Israel.

Heather Watson then beat Sofia Shapatava 6-2 6-0 to ensure Britain top Pool B in Europe/Africa Group 1.

Britain will play Belgium in Saturday’s play-off.

Another victory there would see Judy Murray’s side progress to a World Group II play-off in April, and the possibility of a first home tie for Britain’s women since 1993.

Fed Cup Format
Britain are in Europe/Africa Group 1 – a 14-team group divided into four pools that is played out once a year over a week. Two teams qualify for a World Group II play-off in April, two teams are relegated to Europe/Africa Zone Group II.
GB won their three-team pool and will face Pool D winners Belgium on Saturday for a place in that April play-off. World Group II is an eight-team division played out over home or away ties – GB have not played a home tie since 1993.

In the four years since Murray took over the captaincy they have twice come through Europe/Africa Group 1, only to lose away ties against Sweden in 2012 and Argentina in 2013.

Murray’s hopes were dealt a blow before the tournament started this year when Australian Open semi-finalist and British number one Johanna Konta withdrew because of illness, prompting the captain to call on Swan.

The US-based teenager made her Fed Cup debut on Thursday with a victory against South Africa, but Gorgodze – ranked 197 places higher than the Briton – was a significant step up in class.

The Georgian broke serve at the first opportunity for a 2-0 lead but Swan then took 10 of the next 12 games to build a decisive advantage.

Leading 6-3 4-1, Swan held off a fightback and saved break points before closing it out after one hour and 31 minutes.

Watson, ranked 85th, was far too strong for world number 226 Sofia Shapatava in the second singles match as she won in one hour.

Jocelyn Rae and Anna Smith were beaten 6-2 6-4 by Shapatava and Oksana Kalashnikova in the doubles match.

“Joss had a back injury which restricted her, especially on serve, and of course that’s a little bit of a worry for Saturday,” Murray told the LTA.

Belgium will go into Saturday’s decider as the favourites in terms of rankings, with Alison van Uytvanck their number one at 43 in the world.

Murray added: “They have a strong team but I know enough about Fed Cup to know that rankings can go out of the window when you’re playing for your country.”

Katie Swan on the rise
Swan is Britain’s youngest Fed Cup player at 16 years and 316 days, surpassing Anne Keothavong (17 years and 221 days in 2001) She reached the Australian Open girls’ final in 2015 and ended the year ranked third in juniors
She is the current British number 10 at 524 in the world Swan won her first ITF senior titles in Egypt and Spain last year
Swan was born in Bristol but is based in Kansas, USA, where her family relocated in 2013 Denise Panagopoulou of Greece is the youngest ever Fed Cup player – 12 years and 360 days in 1977

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Teenager Swan wins on Fed Cup debut

  • Posted: Feb 04, 2016

Katie Swan became Great Britain’s youngest Fed Cup player at the age of 16 as she helped her team to victory over South Africa in Eilat, Israel.

The teenager, ranked 524th, defeated Ilze Hattingh 6-3 6-0 to give Britain a 1-0 lead in their first tie at the Europe/Africa Group 1 tournament.

Heather Watson and the doubles team of Jocelyn Rae and Anna Smith wrapped up a 3-0 victory for Judy Murray’s team.

Britain must win three ties to secure a World Group II play-off in April.

Captain Murray selected Swan to play singles after Australian Open semi-finalist and British number one Johanna Konta withdrew because of illness.

Katie Swan on the rise
Swan is Britain’s youngest Fed Cup player at 16 years and 316 days, surpassing Anne Keothavong (17 years and 221 days in 2001) She reached the Australian Open girls’ final in 2015 and ended the year ranked third in juniors
She is the current British number 10 at 524 in the world Swan won her first ITF senior titles in Egypt and Spain last year
Swan was born in Bristol but is based in Kansas, USA, where her family relocated in 2013 Denise Panagopoulou of Greece is the youngest ever Fed Cup player – 12 years and 360 days in 1977

Swan, who reached the Australian Open junior final last year, was ranked 126 places higher than 19-year-old Hattingh and beat her in just 55 minutes.

“I was really excited to play but I was also a bit nervous, which was showing in the beginning, but I managed to relax after a few games and I started playing really well,” Swan told the Fed Cup website.

“It’s just amazing to get to play for your country – for me it’s the best thing in tennis representing your country.

“British tennis is doing amazing. We have the Davis Cup boys who just won and obviously Jo and Andy (Murray) and Jamie (Murray) doing so well in Australia. It’s inspired the whole team.”

Watson, ranked 85th, was a comfortable 6-3 6-3 winner over world number 317 Chanel Simmonds in the second singles, before Rae and Smith defeated Madrie Le Roux and Michelle Sammons 6-3 6-2.

Britain will take on Georgia in the second and final group tie on Friday, with victory likely to set up a clash with Belgium on Saturday for one of the two qualification places on offer.

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Del Potro to return at Delray Beach

  • Posted: Feb 03, 2016

Former world number four Juan Martin del Potro will make his comeback at Delray Beach on 15 February after almost a year out with a wrist injury.

The 27-year-old Argentine, who won the US Open in 2009, last played at Miami in March.

He has had wrist surgery three times since 2010, the third time in June 2015, and asked fans not to expect too much immediately after his comeback.

“I know you are anxious to see me play, but I ask you for patience,” he said.

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Jamie Murray targets number one spot

  • Posted: Feb 03, 2016

Jamie Murray has set his sights on topping the world doubles rankings after partnering Bruno Soares to the Australian Open doubles title.

Murray, who helped Britain win the Davis Cup in November, is ranked second, behind Brazil’s Marcelo Melo.

“The Davis Cup last year gave me a lot of trust in myself, confidence in my game,” said the Scot, 29.

“I got to number two so why not get to number one? It’s one final step to try to get to number one.”

Murray became the first Briton to win the Australian Open men’s doubles title in 82 years when he and Soares, 33, beat Daniel Nestor and Radek Stepanek 2-6 6-4 7-5 in Saturday’s final.

The Brazilian only teamed up with Murray in January, and the man from Dunblane has been pleasantly surprised how quickly their partnership has taken off.

“It was only our third tournament together so I guess it was unexpected that it clicked so fast but it’s been brilliant,” Murray said.

“Obviously you go in with the best intentions. You want great things to happen but it can take time or sometimes it doesn’t happen at all.

“We played our first match in Doha at the start of the year and we felt really good on court with each other. We understood what each other was trying to do on the court.”

Brother Andy Murray lost his fifth Australian Open singles final against Novak Djokovic in straight sets on Sunday.

However, the elder Murray believes his younger brother’s exploits in recent years – which include two Grand Slam titles and an Olympic gold medal – have driven him to push his own career to greater heights.

“Seeing how hard Andy has worked to get to where he is in the game and all the successes that he had, that motivated me and inspired me to work hard and dedicate myself further to my sport,” added 2007 mixed doubles champion Murray.

“I think the last 18 months or so, that has really started to pay dividends. Being brothers as well, you want the best for each other but there’s still a part of you that wants to be doing the same stuff he’s doing.

“I’m watching him on TV or live at tournaments playing in semi-finals [and] finals of these amazing events and I wanted to be parted of that too.”

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Federer out for month after surgery

  • Posted: Feb 03, 2016

World number three Roger Federer will be out of action for a month after having arthroscopic knee surgery.

The 34-year-old 17-times Grand Slam champion had the surgery in his native Switzerland to repair a torn meniscus.

He was injured the day after his four-set Australian Open semi-final defeat by Novak Djokovic last week.

Federer, who won his most recent Grand Slam at Wimbledon in 2012, has pulled out of the World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam and the Dubai Championships.

He is the reigning champion in Dubai, having secured his seventh title there last March, and has won twice in Rotterdam.

“While this is an unfortunate setback, I feel grateful that up until now I have remained mostly healthy throughout my career,” he said.

“My doctors have assured me the surgery was a success and, with proper rehabilitation, I will be able to return to the Tour soon.”

What is arthroscopic surgery?
“An arthroscopy is a type of keyhole surgery used both to diagnose and treat problems with joints.” Source: NHS

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