Wu Yibing came back from the brink to make history Sunday at the Dallas Open, where the fast-rising 23-year-old saved four championship points before downing John Isner 6-7(4), 7-6(3), 7-6(12) to become the first Chinese player to lift an ATP Tour trophy.

Before this week, no Chinese man had ever reached a tour-level final in the Open Era or defeated an opponent in the Top 10 of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings. Wu achieved both of those in one go with his semi-final victory against World No. 8 Taylor Fritz in Dallas, and he continued his history-making run in Sunday’s final with a milestone victory for tennis in his country.

“I made history here for my country and for my home,” said Wu at the trophy ceremony. “I’m very proud of myself and especially thanks to all the fans and my team who came here to support. I couldn’t do this without any of you guys.”

After a bright start, Wu appeared to have faded in the face of a trademark serving barrage from Isner at the indoor ATP 250 event in Texas. The American held championship point on his opponent’s serve at 6-5, 30/40 in the second set, but Wu kept his cool to recover before sealing a historic victory in a nerve-wracking deciding-set tie-break.

Wu forced Isner to push a forehand long to clinch a third-set tie-break in which the first 22 points went with serve. He completed a remarkable two-hour, 59-minute win despite Isner firing 44 aces in the match.

“It’s a tough one to lose,” said Isner, who is now 16-15 in tour-level finals. “I don’t know how many match points I had, I’m sure it’s a lot. I swear I thought I won the match a few times. I know he hit one ball… It had to be [on] the back sixteenth of the line on one of the points… Sports can be brutal. I had match point in the second set too.

“It’s like he plays every point the same, so definitely no nerves,” added Isner when asked about Wu’s performance. “He gets a ball to hit, he hits it, and on this court it’s hard to hit him a shot he is uncomfortable with… He is an unbelievable ballstriker and a very good talent.”

Even after falling a set behind, Wu continued to strike aggressively from the baseline in his maiden tour-level meeting with Isner. His combination of power and accuracy brought him 41 winners, including seven aces, while the Chinese also won all 13 points he played at the net.

Wu, who did not compete on the ATP Tour from March 2019 to January 2022 due to a series of injuries, had notched just six tour-level wins prior to this week. Yet he showed no sign of nerves throughout his run, during which he defeated Michael Mmoh, third seed Denis Shapovalov, Adrian Mannarino, top seed Fritz, and Isner.

On Monday, Wu became just the second Chinese player to crack the Top 100 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings. Now he will rise to a career-high World No. 58 just one week later.

Isner, who pledged to donate $100 to the Isner Family Foundation for each ace he hit this week, finished the tournament with 138 aces, raising $13,800 for needy children in the Dallas area.

Second seeds Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni lost a set in their opening match of the Cordoba Open. But the Argentines did not lose another from there, surging through the rest of the tournament to capture the ATP 250 trophy.

Gonzalez and Molteni defeated Frenchmen Sadio Doumbia and Fabien Reboul 6-4, 6-4 on Sunday to clinch the crown. They converted three of their four break points to triumph after one hour and 24 minutes.

“It’s a very important week for us, we didn’t start the year well,” Gonzalez said. “We had some tough matches and winning at home is a motivation for what comes next. I had lost two times against Molteni in Cordoba, so now I decided to join him to finally become champion here!”

Molteni has dominated in Cordoba in recent years, earning the title in 2019 with Roman Jebavy and 2022 with Santiago Gonzalez before his latest win alongside Maximo Gonzalez.

“With Machi we played many tournaments. Last year we started in ATP-level and now we are going to continue and hopefully we will have more results together,” Molteni said. “For me to win for the third time in Cordoba is spectacular. Here I feel good on and off the court and I hope to come back for more every year.”

The victory marked the second title as a team for Gonzalez and Molteni. They also emerged with the trophy last year in Gijon. Gonzalez has won 13 tour-level doubles titles and Molteni has claimed 12 crowns.

Robin Haase and Matwe Middelkoop captured their first title of the season on Sunday when they lifted the trophy at the Open Sud de France – Montpellier.

The Dutchmen defeated wild cards Maxime Cressy and Albano Olivetti 7-6(4), 4-6, 10-6 in the final of the ATP 250 for their fifth tour-level crown as a team. The fourth seeds lost a set in three of their four matches, but emerged victorious in France.

Haase and Middelkoop withstood 13 aces from their opponents in the championship clash. In the Match Tie-break they rode their own serves to victory, claiming seven of their eight service points — including all five behind their first serves — to close out the week in style.

Haase and Middelkoop also advanced to the third round of this year’s Australian Open, giving them a 7-3 tour-level record on the season. Next week they will try to defend a title on home soil at the ABN AMRO Open in Rotterdam.

Cressy was competing in his second final of the day in Montpellier after losing a tight singles final in straight sets to Jannik Sinner. Both the American and Olivetti, a Frenchman, were trying to lift their first ATP Tour doubles trophy.

Did You Know?
Middelkoop has now won at least one ATP Tour doubles in eight consecutive seasons. He owns 14 tour-level doubles trophies and his partner, Haase, has claimed eight.

When Felix Auger-Aliassime steps onto court at the ABN AMRO Open in Rotterdam this week, he will be returning to the scene of his first ATP Tour title triumph.

The Canadian arrived at the ATP 500 event in 2022 in confident mood after reaching the quarter-finals at the Australian Open. Determined to have a positive week, Auger-Aliassime quickly found his range in the Netherlands.

“Every week is an opportunity in tennis. Sometimes you lose, sometimes you win. Starting with the first round, I lost the first set [against Egor Gerasimov] but felt I was playing good tennis. Then I actually won 6-2, 6-2 after, if I recall,” said Auger-Aliassime, a star in the first season of Netflix’s Break Point.

“As the week went on, I felt that I was playing better and better. Playing Andy [Murray], one of the best players in the history of our sport, is always special. I had an amazing start and played some of my best tennis of the year. I went up 4-0 and then, as he always does, he broke me back and came back. I was able to close out the first set. And then again the second set started my way and I was able to dictate the match and be really dominant. It was a great win.”

After defeating Murray, Auger-Aliassime moved past Cameron Norrie to set a semi-final clash against Andrey Rublev. The 22-year-old clawed past Rublev 6-7(5), 6-4, 6-2 in what he recalls as the most challenging match of the event.

“The match against Andrey in the semi-finals was the toughest match of the week,” Auger-Aliassime said. “I had a lot of chances to win the first set and I thought I should win it and then I lost the tie-break. We played some good tennis.

“And then the second set he should have won and I won it. I was down 0/40 at some point on my serve. I was able to save that game and break him right after. Then after the third set I felt there was a big momentum shift. I felt good physically and then I just started dominating the play.

Having booked his spot in the final, Auger-Aliassime was determined to clinch his first tour-level title and improve on his 0-8 record in championship matches.

“Every time I lost one of those finals it was tough mentally,” Auger-Aliassime said. “I said this year I am going to try to be a different player. I am going to try to be a better player than I was the year before. That means I am going to try and play a better match when I get to those finals. So I really felt I was able to put all those negative things on the side and really focus on the positives and be optimistic and approach the match with a lot of confidence.”

With the pressure on, Auger-Aliassime rose to the occasion, clinching a 6-4, 6-2 victory against Stefanos Tsitsipas. It is a moment that will live long in his memory.

“When I saw the ball go out on match point, it was a big relief for me and my team. Having my mum, dad on FaceTime, that is what got me emotional,” Auger-Aliassime said.

“I think on the court I was really happy but wasn’t feeling all the emotions, but once you’re close with your people and share a moment with them, that’s when you really start feeling your emotions because you think of the tough moments of losing finals. You think of the work that you put to get there. It is a big relief, the stress goes out at the same time. I think that is why you feel emotions as a player.”

Having clinched three tour-level crowns since, Auger-Aliassime will try to repeat his Rotterdam heroics and add to his trophy collection at the ATP 500.

Jannik Sinner captured his seventh tour-level title and his first of the season on Sunday when he moved past American Maxime Cressy 7-6(3), 6-3 to triumph at the Open Sud de France – Montpellier.

Sinner had never won a match in two previous appearances at the ATP 250 event, but was impressive all week to change that record. After receiving a walkover from Marton Fucsovics, he defeated Lorenzo Sonego, Arthur Fils and Cressy to become the first Italian champion in the tournament’s history.

“To be honest, the first key was to hold the serve. In the tie-break I knew he may miss something. I tried to keep my serve, which I have done, so I am very happy about the first set,” Sinner said in his on-court interview. “The second set was a little bit different. I had a couple of good chances but he then served very well. I am very happy I broke him here and then I served very well at the end of match.”

In a tight final, the Italian soaked up Cressy’s thunderous serving and big hitting, turning the tables during baseline exchanges with clean striking. The second seed won 86 per cent (32/37) of his first-serve points and was strong on return, finding the feet of the onrushing American to seal his victory after one hour and 35 minutes.

Sinner earned the decisive mini-break at the start of the first-set tie-break when Cressy double faulted. After moving ahead, he remained patient in the second set, breaking in the eighth game, when Cressy pushed a volley wide, before he held serve to clinch the crown.

The 21-year, who reached the fourth round at the Australian Open last month, has won six of his seven tour-level titles on hard courts. His other triumph came on clay in Umag.

Sinner is the first player to win a tour-level title this year without having dropped a set and the first since countryman Lorenzo Musetti won the title in Naples in October. The 21-year-old is up to No. 14 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings following his run in France.

Cressy, competing in his fourth tour-level final, was aiming to win his second ATP Tour crown. The 25-year-old, who edged past World No. 9 Holger Rune to reach the championship match, is up to No. 40 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings.

Did You Know?
Sinner has won seven of the eight tour-level finals that he has played. His only defeat came against Hubert Hurkacz in the Miami final in 2021.

The fast-rising Wu Yibing scored the biggest win of his blossoming career on Saturday at the Dallas Open. In addition to the personal milestone of his first Top 10 victory against Taylor Fritz, the 23-year-old became the first Chinese man to reach an ATP Tour final in the Open Era.

In a 6-7(3), 7-5, 6-4 triumph, Wu used his well-rounded game to upset the top seed in a match of the highest quality from both sides of the net. Despite facing an American, Wu’s irresistible skills in both attack and defense earned him his fair share of support in Dallas. He finished with 34 winners, including two in a row to close out the match in style.

“When I’m playing tonight, I wasn’t thinking about the score or winning or losing. I’m just trying to perform my best,” he said in his on-court interview, before addressing the fans. “You guys are amazing, cheering for us every point. Thanks, guys!”

Enterting the week at a career high of World No. 97, Wu has soared 21 spots to No. 76 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings behind his final run. He is now set to become the highest-ranked Chinese player in the history of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, passing Zhang Zhizhen, who currently sits at a career high No. 91.

After letting slip two set points at 5-4 in the opening set — one with a rare forehand miss — Wu saved five break points to hold for 2-2 in the second. He would face only one more, at 4-3 in the third, when he escaped with some dazzling defending in the face of a line-clipping forehand from Fritz.

“I remember I had two set points in the first set. I have to say I choked a little bit,” he said with a laugh. “That forehand, I didn’t miss much, but I couldn’t make it. But in general I think I’m pretty relaxed.”

Showing no signs of nerves down the stretch, he served out the match to love with the same brand of fearless tennis he played throughout the two-hour, 32-minute match. Wu celebrated by putting his hands on his head as he soaked in his latest achievement.

Another American awaits in the final: Dallas resident John Isner, who defeated J.J. Wolf 3-6, 7-5, 7-6(4) earlier on Saturday (Read Match Report). In stark contrast to what will be Wu’s first final, Isner will be seeking his 17th tour-level title in his 31st championship match.

John Isner advanced to his 31st ATP Tour final on Saturday at the Dallas Open, but this one is extra special. With family and friends in the stands, the 37-year-old moved within one victory of the title at the ATP 250 event in his home city.

The fifth seed won an all-American matchup against J.J. Wolf 3-6, 7-5, 7-6(4), overcoming a slow start with a dominant serving performance that improved throughout the two-and-a-half-hour contest.

“I saved a lot of break points with unreturnable serves. Without that I would have been dusted off the court 6-3, 6-4,” Isner said in his on-court interview. “So I’m of course very fortunate to have that weapon in my pocket, and I needed every bit of it today.

“It was an absolute battle, so I’m pretty tired. But I’m absolutely ecstatic to be in the final tomorrow here in Dallas.”

After facing eight break points in his first eight service games, Isner found form on his delivery to put pressure on his 24-year-old opponent. The 16-time tour-level titlist claimed his lone break point of the match to snatch the second set, then raced out to a 4/0 lead in the final-set tie-break before closing out victory with a delicate drop-volley winner.

Much of Isner’s long run of success on the ATP Tour can be credited to his ability on serve and in tie-breaks, and he delivered on both fronts against Wolf. He fired 31 aces in the contest — extending his record total to 14,133 — and won his 501st tie-break tie-break to seal the victory. In Friday’s quarter-finals, Isner became the first man to win 500 tie-breaks in the Open Era.

One thing Isner does not have on his side is youth. One day after beating a semi-final opponent 13 years his junior, he will take on another 20-something in the final in either Taylor Fritz or Wu Yibing. After playing just two matches in January, going 0-2 Down Under, Isner has won four matches in five days to reach the Dallas final.

How is his body holding up?

“Truthfully, it feels terrible right now,” he said with a laugh. “I’m 38 in April. It’s not getting any easier. I started off a little slow, a little sluggish, but in the third set I actually felt the best I felt the whole match. I had a lot of adrenaline there at the end and I was able to hold my nerve and win.

“Right now the name of the game is recovery. I’ll get back in the training room and try to get this big body ready for tomorrow.”

After his three-set singles semi-final win against Holger Rune, Maxime Cressy earned a second Saturday victory at the Open Sud de France — Montpellier to book his place in the doubles final.

The Paris-born American teamed with Frenchman Albano Olivetti to defeat Sander Arends and David Pel 6-1, 6-4, setting up a title showdown against another Dutch duo: fourth seeds Robin Haase and Matwe Middelkoop.

Cressy/Olivetti saved the only break point they faced in the semi-final contest and converted on three of their five break opportunities. Their dominant day on serve included seven aces and an 89 per cent win rate on first serve.

The American-French pair has dropped just eight games in its past two matches, beginning with a 6-1, 6-2 upset of second seeds Santiago Gonzalez and Edouard Roger-Vasselin on Thursday. The duo won a Match Tie-break in their opening match on Monday.

Haase/Middelkoop, their final opponents, secured their place in the title match on Friday with a 3-6, 6-3, 10-8 win against top-seeded Germans Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz.

Argentines Gonzalez/Molteni Reach Cordoba Final
In addition to the all-Argentine singles final between Sebastian Baez and Federico Coria at the Cordoba Open, there will also be two home favourites in action in the doubles championship match.

Second seeds Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni booked their place in the final with a 6-4, 6-3 win against Andrey Golubev and Aleksandr Nedovyesov on Saturday. After defeating the fourth-seeded Kazaks, they will face Frenchmen Sadio Doumbia and Fabien Reboul in the title match. The third seeds knocked off top seeds Rafael Matos and David Vega Hernandez 7-6(2), 6-2 later in the day.

Americans Lammons/Withrow Into Dallas Title Match
There will also be home representation in the Dallas Open final, with second seeds Nathaniel Lammons and Jackson Withrow playing for the title. The Americans earned that privilege with a 7-6(11), 7-5 win against Indians Yuki Bhambri and Saketh Myneni on Saturday.

They will face top seeds Jamie Murray and Michael Venus in the title match. The British-Kiwi duo earned a 6-3, 6-2 victory against fourth seeds Andre Goransson and Ben McLachlan to close the evening’s play at the ATP 250.

Seeded for the first time at an ATP Tour event, #NextGenATP American Ben Shelton will not be guaranteed all the home support when he steps out for his first-round clash at next week’s Delray Beach Open.

The 20-year-old Shelton has been drawn against countryman Marcos Giron at the hard-court ATP 250 event in Florida, where he is the eighth seed. If the Australian Open quarter-finalist Shelton wins, he could face another more-experienced American in the second round in 2017 champion Jack Sock, while fourth seed Miomir Kecmanovic is a potential quarter-final opponent.

View Draws: Singles | Doubles

Joining Shelton in the bottom half of the draw in southern Florida are Tommy Paul and John Isner. The pair are seeded to meet in the quarter-finals, but Australian Open semi-finalist and second seed Paul will first focus on a second-round clash against Jordan Thompson or Denis Kudla. The seventh-seeded Isner will take on a qualifier to start his campaign.

In-form Americans also feature in the top half of the draw, where top seed Taylor Fritz could meet J.J. Wolf in the quarter-finals. Both are playing in the Dallas semi-finals this weekend — if either player reaches the same stage in Delray Beach next week, potential opponents there include third seed Denis Shapovalov and fifth seed Yoshihito Nishioka.

Fognini Or Djere First Up For Alcaraz On Buenos Aires Clay
At the Argentina Open in Buenos Aires, Carlos Alcaraz makes his ATP Tour return after missing three months due to injury. The 19-year-old, who became the youngest No. 1 in Pepperstone ATP Rankings history last September after lifting his maiden Grand Slam trophy at the US Open, will meet Fabio Fognini or Laslo Djere on his tournament debut.

View Draws: Singles | Doubles

The Spaniard’s other rivals in the top half of the draw at the clay-court ATP 250 include a trio of seeded Argentines. Sixth seed Sebastian Baez is a potential quarter-final opponent should Alcaraz make it that far, while a semi-final run could pit the top seed against Diego Schwartzman or Francisco Cerundolo.

Second seed Cameron Norrie is making his main draw debut in the Argentine capital, where he opens against Federico Coria or Facundo Diaz Acosta in the bottom half of the draw. Seventh seed Alex Molcan meets former World No. 3 Dominic Thiem in an opening-round highlight, with third seed Lorenzo Musetti a potential quarter-final opponent for both Molcan and Thiem.

Editor’s note: This story was translated from ATPTour.com/es

The time has come. Carlos Alcaraz now has a place and date for his 2023 season debut. He will play his first match of the year next week at the Argentina Open, facing the winner of the first-round encounter between Fabio Fognini and Laslo Djere in Buenos Aires.

Before taking to the South American clay, the No. 2 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings spoke to the press on Saturday about how he is approaching his first clash of the year.

“It’ll be my first tournament since I picked up the injury in Paris,” said the Spaniard, who suffered an oblique tear last November at the Rolex Paris Masters. “It’s been four months since then. But I always arrive thinking about winning and wanting to win, even though it won’t be easy after such a long time without competing.”

The 19-year-old Murcia native touched upon the difficulty of the fact that most of his opponents will have six weeks of competition under their belts this season: “That’s why I’ve come a few days early, to train with really good players, gradually improve and to be able to start the tournament as well as possible,” he explained.

The top seed has decided to bring a few family members with him to South America. His father, his brother and his uncle will be alongside the former World No. 1 in Argentina.

“They’re here and I also count my team as family: Juanjo [Moreno], my physio, Albert Molina and Toni [Antonio Martínez Cascales],” he said.

Alcaraz understands that the presence of significant others in his life beyond the court can have an important influence on his performance with racquet in hand: “I have a great time with them. At the end of the day, the time on court is two or three hours a day. The rest of the time you have to do things you enjoy, that make you feel good so that you can do as well as possible in the tournament. They come to support me, but also to bring that part of ‘home’, which is also very important.”

View Buenos Aires Draw

Having climbed to the top of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings on 12 September 2022, the Spaniard stayed at World No. 1 for 20 weeks, matching the time spent there by the legendary Mats Wilander and surpassing other greats of the sport like Andy Roddick, Boris Becker, Marat Safin and his own coach Juan Carlos Ferrero.

All of this was reward for a year in which he picked up his first Grand Slam title at the US Open, his first ATP Masters 1000 crowns in Miami and Madrid, and his first ATP 500 trophies in Rio de Janeiro and Barcelona.

“It was a very good year,” he said of his recent success. “I achieved my dream, my goal, very quickly. Practically in just a year. I dealt with it as naturally as possible. After becoming No. 1 I had to set new goals, new things for the long term, to continue to enjoy myself, continue to improve, because I’m very young and I have a lot of things to improve, despite being the No. 1. You have to keep training and looking forward.”

So, what are these things he needs to improve?

“I think I can improve everything in terms of my game, fitness and mentality,” he said. “Little by little, my team will take those small steps to get even better.”

Alcaraz is following in the footsteps of the best of all time: “Rafa, Roger and Djokovic, when they were young, they were so good, but as time has gone by, they’ve improved,” he added. This is the basis of his motivation from now on.

“I’m certain that I need to continue to improve,” he insisted. “Achieving my dream very quickly caught me by surprise, so to speak. Now I’m used to it, I have a goal, I know where I want to get to, what I want to be, and that is the most important thing.”

Interestingly, he will be playing an event this week that Ferrero won in 2010. “It’s a really wonderful tournament that Juan Carlos won before and he’s told me good things about it,” he shared.

Alcaraz has already matched some of Ferrero’s achievements by lifting the trophies in Umag and Barcelona, and by winning a Grand Slam and becoming World No. 1. Will he continue to imitate his coach in Buenos Aires?

We will find out this week, but, as he was keen to point out: “It won’t be easy.”