It was a night Taro Daniel will never forget.

After Casper Ruud hit a final forehand into the net on the centre court of the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado for HSBC, the 30-year-old Japanese player fell to his knees and held his arms out in celebration. The qualifier had saved two match points en route to ousting World No. 4 Ruud 7-5, 2-6, 7-6(5) after two hours and 58 minutes to reach the quarter-finals in Acapulco.

“I think every time these victories feel more like my own. The first time I beat Djokovic, it felt a little bit like he was not playing very well,” Daniel said. “But this time I felt like I was really playing against Casper at a high level. I mean obviously he’s still coming back, he’s a bit rusty and all that. But still, I had to win it.

“It was a very physical battle, great atmosphere, so happy.”

Entering the match, Daniel had upset then-World No. 13 Novak Djokovic at Indian Wells in 2018, but had never earned a win against a Top 10 opponent (previously 0-8). The New York-born righty will face eighth seed Alex de Minaur for a place in the semi-finals. 

Ruud, who before the week had not played since losing in the second round of the Australian Open, never found the rhythm that he did so consistently on hard courts last year. His heavy forehand, which is typically a reliable weapon, proved not to be in Mexico, contributing to the 46 unforced errors he made in the match.

But some of that was because Daniel played fearless tennis and was willing to take the action to his opponent. Even so, the Norwegian earned two match points on the Japanese player’s serve at 5-6 in the third set.

On the second seed’s first opportunity, Daniel hit a Ruud-like inside-out forehand, which the favourite was unable to slice into the court. Later in the game, Ruud mishit a backhand return well out. The qualifier took full advantage of his second life in the match by playing a composed tie-break.

“I’ve always really loved playing here, but I kind of struggled with the conditions because it’s so hot,” Daniel said. “But I think I’ve been working really hard on my fitness and also my mental skills in order to cope with the humidity and cope with the suffering of the physical side of it. It’s definitely paying off and to be able to beat a guy like this, it definitely shows.”

De Minaur’s victory had far less drama. The Australian ousted Italian qualifier Jacopo Berrettini, the younger brother of Matteo Berrettini, 6-1, 6-0. Jacopo earned his first ATP Tour win Tuesday evening against Oscar Otte.

In other action, Frances Tiafoe defeated wild card Feliciano Lopez 6-2, 7-6(6). The 41-year-old Spaniard Lopez was trying to become the oldest ATP Tour quarter-finalist since 42-year-old Jimmy Connors in 1995 at Halle, but the American did not allow him to claw into a final set.

Jaume Munar caused an upset Wednesday at the Movistar Chile Open, where he ousted top seed Lorenzo Musetti 6-4, 6-4 to reach the quarter-finals.

The Spaniard had won both his previous meetings with Musetti, but both had come on the ATP Challenger Tour. A change in level did not change the result, as World No. 66 Munar advanced after one hour and 30 minutes.

“It was difficult for me to play today. [The court is] so much faster than on Monday night, and I tried to be focussed very much on my serve, tried to have variety in my game,” Munar said. “I knew that Lorenzo, he’s a great player. Of course he didn’t play his best today, but I tried to use my skills to move the opponent [out of] the comfort zone and I think I did it great today.”

Munar, who won 87 per cent of his first-serve points against the Italian, is pursuing his first ATP Tour title this week. The 25-year-old is not getting ahead of himself, though.

“I’m here to try my best,” Munar said. “I wasn’t feeling ready before the swing here because I wasn’t playing my best. I was not on top of my fitness and I think I’ve been managing day by day by working hard. I think my team is doing also an extremely good job. And I think right now in quarters after these two matches, competing the way I’m competing, let’s hope for the best.”

Musetti struggled to find his best game during the “Golden Swing” in South America, tallying a 1-3 record in Buenos Aires, Rio de Janeiro and Santiago. The World No. 18, who won four matches for Team Italy at the inaugural United Cup to start the year, will try to discover his top form at the BNP Paribas Open.

Earlier in the day, qualifier Yannick Hanfmann reached his first ATP Tour quarter-final of the season with a 7-6(6), 6-2 win against Roberto Carballes Baena.

The German has made all nine of his tour-level quarter-finals on clay. Like Munar, he is also trying to secure his maiden ATP Tour trophy in Santiago.

“Bwehhhh, it’s Andrey Rublev! Very easy!”

There’s no stumping Casper Ruud when it comes to guessing familiar noises heard on the ATP Tour. The Norwegian became the star of the show in the latest edition of ATP Uncovered’s Head-To-Head series. This week, the players faced off in a ‘Guess The Grunt’ challenge.

Ben Shelton revealed his thought process as he pinned Shapovalov’s grunt: “It’s short and there’s not really an accent to it.”

“It’s Denis [Shapovalov]?” said Shang Juncheng with a large smile across his face. “I didn’t even know he grunts! I should know that one, I’ve hit with him like a million times.”

Diego Schwartzman was quick to recognise a familiar sound. “Me, me, me!” But it wasn’t as easy to nail for Shelton, who revealed he had just practised with the Argentine 30 minutes before the guessing game.

Cameron Norrie, David Goffin, and Andrey Rublev were featured for a second time in the fun series. But how would they compare to their 2019 series debut?

Watch and listen so you too can put your knowledge of ATP Tour grunts to the test!

Novak Djokovic is at the top of the sport, World No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings for a record 378th week. After advancing to the quarter-finals of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships on Wednesday, the Serbian made clear he has no intention of relinquishing his position without a fight.

“New generations are coming,” Djokovic said during his on-court interview. “But I’m not afraid.”

The 35-year-old paused before delivering the end of his message. And once he did, Djokovic cracked a wide smile. Whether the Serbian was joking or not, he has proven his words true.

Djokovic is now 14-0 on the season. Since the start of Rome last May, he has won 49 of his 52 matches, including 22 victories against Top 20 opposition.

During the World No. 1’s post-match press conference in Dubai after defeating Tallon Griekspoor 6-2, 6-3, a reporter asked about athletes throughout sports who were born in the 1980s — including himself, Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and LeBron James — succeeding later into their careers.

“I don’t believe in coincidences in life. Everything happens for a reason. It’s great that the big names that you mentioned were all born in the same decade,” Djokovic said. “I’m sure that things that we talk about today, we feel some of the achievements are just not reachable maybe in 10 years’ time or whatever, that we’ll be seeing someone surpassing basketball’s biggest records, or tennis. I would be surprised if that didn’t happen, to be honest, because everything is improving so much.

“One is getting to learn from people that came and have done some great things before them. I’m sure that the young players in tennis are studying Federer, Nadal, my career, how we go about things on and off the court, what made us successful. That’s what I was doing. I mean, if you really want to be No. 1 in the world, best in your craft, so to say, you need to learn from the people that have been in those shoes.”

Meanwhile, Djokovic continues to put his records farther out of reach of his peers and future generations. For example, Roger Federer is second for most weeks at World No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings with 310 weeks, more than a year of accrued time less than the Serbian. But Djokovic did not get to this point by believing the records in front of him were too far to strive for.

“Now some achievements look far from reachable, but maybe that was the case also 10 years ago or something for some of the achievements in tennis,” Djokovic said. “But everything is possible.”

With that in mind, Djokovic is not done pushing for more in his career.

“I still have lots of desire to break records, to play. Every match is different, but that’s the beauty of competitive tennis, is that you never know what the next day brings. So you have to always figure out the way by yourself on the court,” Djokovic said. “It’s kind of a little bit symbolic to life, as well. Of course, there’s a team of people around you, but then you have to take responsibility for your actions.”

For now, Djokovic is focussed on claiming a sixth title in Dubai this week. The top seed will play fifth seed Hubert Hurkacz in the quarter-finals.

Novak Djokovic did not play competitive tennis for a month prior to this week’s Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships. Yet the World No. 1 appeared near his best in just his second match back on Wednesday, when he dismantled Tallon Griekspoor 6-2, 6-3 to reach the quarter-finals at the ATP 500.

Djokovic had shown frustration during his three-set battle with Czech qualifier Tomas Machac in the first round on Tuesday, but the 35-year-old struck the ball cleanly from the start on Wednesday against Griekspoor. Djokovic broke the No. 39-ranked Dutchman four times to race to an 82-minute victory against one of the in-form players on the ATP Tour.

“It’s been a great evening for me tonight,” said Djokovic in his on-court interview. “Yesterday I really had to work hard to get a win. Tonight, right from the blocks, I think I was sharp. I played definitely better-quality tennis than I did last night.

“Maybe the last three or four games weren’t the best to close the match, but I managed to find a good serve in the end. I’m very pleased with the performance and with the way I felt on the court, and hopefully things can go in the right direction for tomorrow.”

The five-time Dubai champion crashed 29 winners in a scintillating display of baseline hitting. Griekspoor, who entered the match with a 12-3 record for the season, could do little to counter in the face of Djokovic’s charge, as the Serbian comfortably maintained his record of never having lost before the quarter-finals in 13 appearances in Dubai.

“[My level was] much closer to the best level tonight than it was yesterday,” said Djokovic. “I probably didn’t expect to play that well tonight, considering last night’s match. But here we go, every day is a new day, a new opportunity, and I’m really glad that I played this well tonight.”

With the win, Djokovic improved his ATP Head2Head series lead against Griekspoor to 2-0, after he also defeated the Dutchman in straight sets at the 2021 US Open. The World No. 1 was pleased with the way he handled the challenge of an opponent he had minimal experience against.

“He’s got a lot of firepower in his game,” said Djokovic. “His serve and forehand, those are two of his favourite shots. He tries to dictate the points from the back of the court with the forehand, and I knew that I had to take the time away from him.”

Djokovic on Monday began his 378th week as No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings to overtake WTA legend Stefanie Graf’s record for the most weeks spent at the top of the sport. He will take on fifth seed Hubert Hurkacz or qualifier Pavel Kotov in the last eight.

In the final match of the day on Dubai’s centre court, Daniil Medvedev delivered a rock-solid performance to defeat Alexander Bublik 6-4, 6-2 for his 11th straight tour-level victory.

The 27-year-old Medvedev is bidding for his third ATP Tour title in as many weeks after his triumphs in Rotterdam and Doha, and he did not face a break point in his 65-minute victory against Bublik in Dubai. After the match, Medvedev acknowledged that his winning streak is helping him deal with the physical exertions of his busy schedule.

“I think confidence is more important than [fatigue], because you don’t want to stop,” said Medvedev. “Unless of course you feel bad physically. Doha was a little bit tough after coming from Europe. It’s a longer flight, so I feel much better physically here in Dubai. [In Doha] I still managed to run good and play good, so I feel 100 per cent ready and am looking forward to my next matches.”

Medvedev remains unbeaten in five tour-level meetings with Bublik. It is just one of a number of dominant ATP Head2Head records the 27-year-old holds against some of the top players on Tour.

Daniil Medvedev, Unbeaten ATP Head2Head Records (Minimum Four Matches Played)

The 17-time tour-level titlist Medvedev does not have such a convincing record against his next opponent in Dubai, however. Borna Coric, who beat Thanasi Kokkinakis 6-7(4), 6-3, 7-5 on Wednesday to set a quarter-final clash against the third seed, leads Medvedev 4-2 in their ATP Head2Head series.

Andrey Rublev produced one of the comebacks of the 2023 season so far on Wednesday at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, where he came back from the brink to defeat Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 1-6, 7-6(6), 7-6(3) in a remarkable second-round clash.

Facing five match points at 1/6 in the second-set tie-break, Rublev’s title defence at the ATP 500 hung by a thread. Yet he stayed focused to reel off seven points in a row and level the match in dramatic fashion, before holding his nerve again in the decider for a stunning two-hour, 25-minute victory.

It was the third time this year that Rublev has saved match points to triumph, and the second time in a week. The 25-year-old saved two match points en route to victory against Holger Rune in the fourth round at January’s Australian Open, and three match points before he defeated Tallon Griekspoor in his Doha opener seven days ago.

“It happened already [three times] this season and I’m super happy that I’m able to win these matches against [top players],” said Rublev post-match. “The beginning [of today’s match] wasn’t good. I got frustrated. He started really well, he was hitting really hard, and I didn’t have many options, but then, little by little, I started to play and started to fight.

“I started to be positive, and I made this crazy tie-break comeback from 1/6 that I’ve never done in my life before… I’m really, really happy.”

Save 5 match points in a row? Rublev sorts it in the second set tiebreak 😮‍💨⁰
The defending champion advances in Dubai, taking the win against Davidovich Fokina after a three set thriller 💪@ddftennis | #DDFTennis pic.twitter.com/dXsWeRbux6

— ATP Tour (@atptour) March 1, 2023

Davidovich Fokina had made a strong start to the pair’s second ATP Head2Head meeting. The World No. 29 raced to the first set after claiming what later proved to be the only two breaks of serve in the match. Rublev cited his own mental discipline as key to maintaining belief when Davidovich Fokina looked set to complete the win.

“All the second set, I was super tight, and I was holding everything inside of me,” he said. “I didn’t even say ‘Let’s go, come on’, to myself, not even once, and I was just completely calm. Then when I won the second set, all the emotions came out.”

The victory improved Rublev’s record in Dubai to 11-2. He is now into his fourth straight quarter-final at the event, where he would become the first back-to-back champion since Roger Federer in 2014-15 if he can repeat his 2022 title run.

His quarter-final opponent will be Botic van de Zandschulp. The Dutchman earlier produced a comeback of his own, rallying to a 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 victory against Mikael Ymer.

Lorenzo Sonego later succeeded where Davidovich Fokina had fallen short by completing a second-round victory against a Top 10 opponent. The Italian delivered a clinical display to defeat fourth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime 7-6(4), 6-4 and reach the quarter-finals in Dubai for the first time.

Sonego endured recent heartbreak of his own last week in Doha, where he let slip three match points before falling to Andy Murray in the first round. He ensured there would be no repeat of that experience in Dubai by firing 24 winners and winning 89 per cent (39/44) of points behind his first serve for his first win against World No. 9 Auger-Aliassime in three attempts.

“It was really tough today, but I played really well,” said the World No. 67 Sonego after securing the fifth Top 10 win of his career. “I was really aggressive with my serve… I improved my game this year and I [have] some good experience on Tour. I’m really happy to beat Felix.”

Sonego takes on Alexander Zverev for a spot in the semi-finals in Dubai. The former World No. 2’s bid to rediscover his best level after long-term injury continued to gain momentum on Wednesday, when he saw off Christopher O’Connell 7-5, 6-4.

On a busy doubles Tuesday at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC, each of the top three seeds were in action. Only one survived the opening round.

Top seeds Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski downed the Mexican wild card duo of Hans Hach Verdugo and Miguel Angel Reyes-Varela 7-6(5), 6-3, avoiding the fate of their fellow seeds in Acapulco.

Marcelo Arevalo and Jean-Julien Rojer, seeded second, were knocked out by Rafael Matos and David Vega Hernandez, who earned a 6-2, 3-6, 10-2 win. Third seeds Jamie Murray and Michael Venus also bowed out in a Match Tie-break, falling to Alexander Erler and Lucas Miedler. The Austrians advanced in a thriller, 6-3, 6-7(7), 11-9.

Matteo Berrettini and Jacopo Berrettini were also in action on Tuesday, but the brothers were knocked off by Frenchmen Sadio Doumbia and Fabien Reboul. The Rio semi-finalists advanced 6-3, 6-4. The Italian brothers were more successful in singles action on Tuesday as both advanced to the second round, with Jacopo scoring his first ATP Tour main-draw singles win in his first tour-level appearance.

Mektic/Pavic Prevail In Dubai Thriller
At the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, top seeds Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic came through a tough opening test against last week’s Doha champions Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden at the ATP 500 event.

The Croatian pair trailed 0/3 in the Match Tie-break, but turned things around for an 87-minute victory, winning seven of the final 10 points to reach the second round. Mektic and Pavic, who reached the championship match in Dubai in 2021 and 2022, will meet Kareem Al Allaf and Abdulrahman Al Janahi next, after the wild cards defeated Tomislav Brkic and Gonzalo Escobar 6-1, 6-3.

Third seeds Lloyd Glasspool and Harri Heliovaara also advanced with a 7-6(3), 6-2 victory against all-German team Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz. There was one big upset in the U.A.E., however, as Ilya Ivashka and defending singles champion Andrey Rublev took out second seeds Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek 7-6(3), 2-6, 10-8.

Santiago Fans Buoyed By Barrios Vera and Tabilo

On a day when Chilean star Cristian Garin upset Dominic Thiem in the sngles at the Movistar Chile Open, Tomas Barrios Vera and Alejandro Tabilo ensured there was also home success on the doubles court.

The wild card pair notched a 6-3, 6-3 win against Facundo Bagnis and Juan Pablo Varillas at the clay-court ATP 250, saving all six break points they faced in the 73-minute clash. In the day’s only other doubles clash in the Chilean capital, Spanish pair Pedro Martinez and Jaume Munar took out Pedro Cachin and Tomas Martin Etcheverry 6-4, 6-3.

Alex de Minaur drew the difficult assignment of playing the lone Mexican in the singles draw at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC on Tuesday night. Facing 17-year-old wild card Rodrigo Pacheco Mendez and his home fans on the stadium court, the Aussie expertly navigated the tricky task with a 6-1, 6-2 victory.

The eighth seed fired 25 winners in the match and saved the lone break point he faced, which came as he held for 5-2 in the second set. Pacheco Mendez grew into the match with the support of the Acapulco crowd, but could not overcome quick starts by De Minaur in both sets, with the Aussie breaking at the first opportunity in each.

“Its never easy, especially first match at a new tournament,” de Minaur said after the one-hour, 16-minute victory. “These conditions are tricky. The opponent was tricky. I’m very happy with the performance, happy with the win, Hopefully we can build on that and go better and bigger for the next round.”

De Minaur brought up match point with a belted backhand winner, then sealed the deal with an extraordinary defensive effort, his scrambling ultimately leading to a forehand miss from his opponent.

With the victory, he improved to 8-4 on the season. After reaching the Australian Open fourth round (l. to Djokovic), De Minaur advanced to consecutive quarter-finals in Rotterdam and Marseille before arriving in Acapulco.

“I think I had a really good start [to the season] and the plan is to build on it and finish the way I started, or even push a little bit more,” he said. “I’m happy with where my level’s at and I’m just trying to keep on pushing, keep trying to get better and get the most out of myself.”

The 24-year-old will next face Italy’s Jacopo Berrettini, brother of Matteo Berrettini. After qualifying for his first ATP Tour main draw this week, Jacopo scored his first tour-level singles win in front of a packed crowd on Court 1. The Italian led Oscar Otte 3-6, 7-6(3), 2-1 when the German retired with an apparent knee injury.

De Minaur is expecting a tough matchup against Berrettini, who recovered after dropping a 6-0 opening set in his opening qualifying match.

“I’ve been watching him this tournament. He’s been playing some great tennis, obviously played way above his ranking,” De Minaur said of the World No. 842. “He’s going to be confident, he’s going to be a very tough match and I’m ready for a battle.”

Matteo also advanced via retirement on Tuesday when Alex Molcan pulled out of their match with the Italian up 6-0, 1-0. The Netflix Break Point star will meet lucky loser Elias Ymer in the last 16 after the Swede defeated Adrian Mannarino 5-7, 6-3, 6-4.

Brandon Nakashima and Mackenzie McDonald also advanced to set up an all-American a second-round meeting. Nakashima beat Daniel Altmaier 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 on the stadium court, while McDonald downed Luciano Darderi 6-4, 6-2 on the Grandstand.