After five months of hard work, Lloyd Harris tasted tour-level victory once again Monday at the Mallorca Championships.

The South African delivered a dominant serving performance to oust seventh seed Bernabe Zapata Miralles 6-2, 7-6(2) and reach the second round at the grass-court ATP 250. It was a first tour-level victory since January for Harris, who came through qualifying to reach the main draw in Spain.

“It’s never easy. I feel like my preparation for the match was boosted by playing some matches in qualifying,” said Harris, who won 89 per cent (33/37) of points behind his first serve. “Obviously, he’s been doing really well… Playing in Spain, in front of a Spanish crowd [who gave] good support to him. I’m happy I got through.”

The former World No. 31 Harris missed the second half of 2022 after undergoing wrist surgery and has built his comeback gradually. The 26-year-old holds a 10-5 record for the season on the ATP Challenger Tour but arrived in Mallorca off the back of four consecutive defeats at tour-level.

With that streak now snapped, Harris’ next test in Mallorca is a maiden Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting with his fellow qualifier Roman Safiullin. The World No. 94 Safiullin defeated #NextGenATP Jordanian Abdullah Shelbayh 6-1, 6-4 in his opening match.

In other Monday action in the Balearic Islands, the in-form Yannick Hanfmann charged past Pedro Cachin 6-2, 6-1 to set a second-round meeting against top seed Stefanos Tsitsipas. Hanfmann is now 15-9 for 2023, a tally that includes a run to his maiden ATP Masters 1000 quarter-final in Rome.

Eighth seed Roberto Carballes Baena edged Ilya Ivashka 6-4, 1-6, 6-3 for his first tour-level win on grass since 2019. The home favourite next meets Corentin Moutet. American Christopher Eubanks held off his #NextGenATP countryman Alex Michelsen 6-3, 6-7(6), 7-5 to set a meeting against his close friend Ben Shelton.

The second seed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina’s opening opponent in Mallorca will be Pavel Kotov. The lucky loser defeated Li Tu, the man he had lost to in the second round of qualifying, 7-6(4), 6-3.

The ATP has confirmed that Andrea Gaudenzi has been re-elected as the Chairman of the organisation. The Italian has held the position since January 2020 and will now serve a second term, from 2024 through 2026.

Under Gaudenzi’s leadership the ATP has implemented some of the most radical reforms in its history as part of the OneVision strategic plan, aimed at establishing new foundations for the sport’s growth. Phase One, which came into effect in 2023, has already generated the largest single-year increase in player compensation in the organisation’s history, with an unprecedented US$37.5 million year-on-year increase across the ATP Tour and Challenger Tour.

“It’s an honour to be appointed for a second term as ATP Chairman, and continue serving the sport that has given me so much,” said Andrea Gaudenzi. “I’m proud of everything we’ve achieved since 2020, during a particularly challenging time for the world. OneVision has strengthened the ATP’s foundation, fostering a genuine partnership between players and tournaments. As we enter the second phase of our strategy, I am more convinced than ever that our sport has huge upside, and that we are well positioned to take advantage of the digital age. Together with the ATP Board and our members, I am committed to making our vision a reality in the coming years.”

Enhancements implemented under OneVision include a groundbreaking 50-50 profit-sharing formula that aligns the interests of players and tournaments. The introduction of expanded 12-day ATP Masters 1000 tournaments has provided increased playing opportunities and prize money for more players. In parallel, leadership, integrity, and member representation have been advanced through governance reform. Meanwhile, new tournament category terms are unlocking unprecedented levels of investment into infrastructure and record valuations across the Tour’s biggest events.

On the Challenger Tour, significant enhancements have elevated the pathway for aspiring players. This includes a redesigned and expanded calendar, raised tournament standards, and record prize money of $21.1 million in 2023 (+75% on 2022). In addition, the ATP Player Pension contributions have hit record heights in recent years, growing more than 125% in 2022.

Other key achievements in Gaudenzi’s first term as ATP Chairman include, together with ATP Media, the establishment of Tennis Data Innovations (TDI) and the long-term aggregation of media rights. TDI, a dedicated entity set up to manage and commercialise data for the Tour across a variety of global markets, most notably including betting and performance, is set to significantly increase ATP’s revenues from 2024 to 2029 whilst the landmark long-term aggregation of the Nitto ATP Finals, ATP 500 and ATP 250 media rights into ATP Media (to sit alongside the ATP Masters 1000s) was also completed this year.

Looking ahead, Phase 2 of OneVision strategic plan aims to enhance collaboration and governance across the T-7 (ATP, WTA, ITF, and the four Grand Slams).

Gaudenzi enjoyed a highly successful professional tennis career, capturing three ATP Tour titles and reaching a career-high Pepperstone ATP Ranking of No. 18. Following his playing career, he obtained a law degree from the University of Bologna, Italy, followed by a Master of Business Administration. Gaudenzi subsequently garnered 20 years of industry-leading expertise in entrepreneurial and C-Level executive roles across the entertainment, tech and gaming sectors, before returning to tennis.

Carlos Alcaraz will return to World No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings on Monday, reclaiming the spot from Novak Djokovic after winning the Cinch Championships.

Djokovic had just taken World No. 1 himself after winning his record 23rd major title at Roland Garros. Two weeks later, the 20-year-old Spaniard will pass the Serbian and begin his 26th week at the top of the men’s tennis mountain.

It will be the sixth time in 2023 that there has been a change at World No. 1, the most in a season since 2018 (seven). The six World No. 1 changes are the most in the first half of a year since 1983, when it swapped seven times through June.

Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings

It has been a constant battle between Alcaraz and Djokovic through the first half of the season and there are no signs it will slow down any time soon. Alcaraz will retain World No. 1 through Wimbledon, but top spot will be up for grabs at the grass-court major.

The 20-year-old will take an 80-point lead into Wimbledon, where nobody will be dropping points this year. He is guaranteed to hold World No. 1 at least three weeks (Eastbourne/Mallorca and Wimbledon), which will bring him to 28 weeks overall.

Djokovic must advance to at least the third round at Wimbledon to have a chance of reclaiming World No. 1. He then must outperform Alcaraz. Daniil Medvedev also has a chance of returning to World No. 1. Medvedev must win the title with Alcaraz failing to reach the fourth round and Djokovic losing before the quarter-finals.

“Of course, recovering the No. 1 before Wimbledon, it gives you extra motivation, it gives you extra confidence coming into Wimbledon,” Alcaraz said after triumphing at The Queen’s Club. “But it doesn’t change too much if I play Wimbledon as the No. 2 or the No. 1.”

Djokovic will try to wrestle the place back from his younger rival as he makes a push to become the first man or woman to reach 400 weeks at World No. 1. The Serbian has already reached 389 weeks, 79 weeks more than the second-placed man, Roger Federer (310 weeks).

As things stand, Alcaraz and Djokovic are poised for a year-long battle for year-end ATP No. 1 presented by Pepperstone. Alcaraz earned the honour for the first time last year, becoming the youngest in history to do so. Djokovic holds the record for year-end No. 1 finishes with seven, the most recent coming in 2021.

On the doubles court, the No. 1 spot in the Pepperstone ATP Doubles Rankings has seen a lot of movement in recent weeks. After Roland Garros, Austin Krajicek reached World No. 1, before Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski took back the position one week later. After triumphing at The Queen’s Club with Ivan Dodig, Krajicek will return to No. 1 again on Monday.

Did You Know?
Alcaraz on Sunday became the third Spaniard to win tour-level titles on hard, clay and grass courts in the same season in the past 15 years, joining Rafael Nadal and David Ferrer. Alcaraz is the 10th different player to lift a trophy on all three surfaces since 2008.

Zhang Zhizhen has taken the ATP Tour by storm within the past year and is closing in on his Top 50 debut in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings.

According to the Chinese star, a light-hearted topic often comes up in conversation with his friends when he is enjoying time off the court.

“They really care about my haircut!” Zhang revealed in the latest edition of ATP Uncovered’s ‘I Am’ series. “Because my hair is curly [and] I had long hair some time last year, so they always started talking about my haircut!”

The Chinese No. 1 also revealed his childhood idol and the two-time major champion after whom he tried to model his two-handed backhand.

“When I was around 12 or 13, I tried [it] but it was not for me,” Zhang said. “I’d say it’s a little bit different.”

Want to know who Zhang was referring to? Watch the full video above to learn about the Shanghai native’s tennis aspirations, the sport he enjoys outside of tennis and one shot he would steal from another player.

Australian star Thanasi Kokkinakis is among the players who will be in action Monday at Wimbledon, where qualifying action will get underway.

The 27-year-old, who reached the second round of the main draw last year at SW19, will open against #NextGenATP Swiss Leandro Riedi. If he advances, an accomplished veteran will be waiting.

If Kokkinakis wins, he will play the winner of Oscar Otte and Benoit Paire. Otte enjoyed a breakout grass-court season in 2022, when he reached the semi-finals in Stuttgart and Halle before advancing to the third round at Wimbledon. Paire made the fourth round at the grass-court major in 2019.

There is a blockbuster first-round qualifying matchup between first seed Matteo Arnaldi, who upset Casper Ruud in Madrid, and Shang Juncheng. Shang has successfully qualified for the season’s first two majors.

Also in action will be third seed Fabian Marozsan, who upset Carlos Alcaraz in Rome. The Hungarian will face Ukrainian Oleksii Krutykh.

Hyeon Chung, the 2017 Next Gen ATP Finals champion, will compete in Wimbledon for the first time since 2015 when he faces Dimitar Kuzmanov.

Guido Pella earned his first grass-court win since 2019 Wimbledon on Sunday when he battled past Marcos Giron 3-6, 6-2, 7-6(3) to reach the second round of the Mallorca Championships.

“Of course it was very tough. I know I can play good on grass, but you have to get used to this surface. It’s not like clay or hard courts,” Pella said. “You have to practise, practise and practise, and this is my fourth day I think, so it was very tough.”

The Argentine lefty trailed by a break in the third set, but rallied to earn a second-round showdown against fourth seed Adrian Mannarino.

In other action, Corentin Moutet eliminated Christopher O’Connell 7-5, 6-4. The Frenchman will play eighth seed Roberto Carballes Baena or Ilya Ivashka. They were tied at one-set apiece before play was suspended for the evening in Mallorca.