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Machac downs #NextGenATP Michelsen, reaches last four in Tokyo

  • Posted: Sep 29, 2024

Could Tomas Machac be dialling in at the perfect time to lift his maiden ATP Tour trophy in Tokyo?

The 23-year-old has seemingly tapped into the currents in the Japanese capital, breezing past #NextGenATP star Alex Michelsen on Sunday. With a stylish 7-6(2), 6-3 triumph, Machac is into his second ATP Tour semi-final at the Kinoshita Group Japan Open Tennis Championships.

Machac struck 34 winners according to Infosys ATP Stats throughout their one hour and 35 minute clash, eventually outlasting Michelsen in the baseline exchanges. The Czech also fired eight aces, won 88 per cent of first-serve points and faced just one break point.

It was a commanding performance that was reflective of his ascent to No. 34 in the PIF ATP Rankings, backing up strong wins against Alexei Popyrin and Tommy Paul earlier in the week.

Michelsen, however, still occupies second place in the PIF ATP Live Race To Jeddah and finds himself in a solid position to secure a spot at the Next Gen ATP Finals for a second consecutive year.

In the last four, Machac will face off against Ugo Humbert after Jack Draper was forced to retire from their clash with the Frenchman leading 7-5, 2-1.

The 22-year-old, who produced an inspired run to the US Open semi-finals earlier this month, took a medical timeout for an abdominal injury, but it was ultimately to no avail as he called time on their first Lexus ATP Head2Head contest.

Humbert is into his 16th ATP Tour semi-final, bidding to clinch his third title of 2024 after wins in Marseille and Dubai propelled him to a career-high of No. 13 in the PIF ATP Rankings.

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Buyunchaokete upsets Musetti, makes Chinese history in Beijing

  • Posted: Sep 29, 2024

The rise of Buyunchaokete shows no sign of slowing down.

The Chinese player continued his ascent on Sunday when he upset Paris Olympics bronze medalist Lorenzo Musetti 6-2, 6-4 to reach the quarter-finals of the China Open in Beijing. He will next play fourth seed Andrey Rublev or Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.

Before last week’s Hangzhou Open, Buyunchaokete had played just one ATP Tour event. The 22-year-old made his maiden tour-level semi-final at the ATP 250 and is now into the last eight at his first ATP 500 tournament.

“I’m really happy. I’m really enjoying playing at home, especially last week in Hangzhou, where I practised almost 15 years and here also at home, I’m in China,” he said in his post-match interview. “I was really looking forward to this tournament because it’s my first 500 here and last week was my first 250, so I’m really enjoying.”

Buyunchaokete is just the second Chinese men’s singles quarter-finalist in China Open history, joining Zhang Ze, who accomplished the feat in 2012. He joined the exclusive club by earning his first victory against a Top 20 opponent in the PIF ATP Rankings in one hour and 29 minutes.

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Less than five months ago, Buyunchaokete was World No. 239. Now the 22-year-old is No. 83 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings and climbing.

The home favourite faced a hobbled opponent in World No. 18 Musetti, who was seemingly in discomfort with his right arm throughout the match. But the Italian still made the Chinese player earn the win, rallying from a double-break deficit in the second set.

Buyunchaokete dictated the action and that proved key. He won 53 per cent of his first-serve return points and converted five of his eight break points according to Infosys ATP Stats.

“I lost a little bit my focus, my energy. I was maybe relaxed because he started doing some drop shots, some trick shots,” Buyunchaokete said. “I’m happy [I] came back [at] 4-all and I had a break and [was able] to finish the match. I’m really happy.”

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Five things to know about Tallon Griekspoor

  • Posted: Sep 29, 2024

Tallon Griekspoor will try to earn the biggest win of his career on Sunday evening when he faces second seed Carlos Alcaraz for a spot in the China Open quarter-finals.

ATPTour.com looks at five things to know about the No. 39 player in the PIF ATP Rankings before his big match in Beijing.

Tallon reached a career-high World No. 21 in November 2023
Griekspoor is currently the No. 1 Dutch player in the PIF ATP Rankings. Before 2021 he had never cracked the Top 100. He started his 2023 season at No. 95. Winning his maiden tour-level title at the ATP 250 event in Pune in January 2023, the Dutchman boosted his ranking early on in the season.

A third-round appearance at the Australian Open and semi-final run at the ATP 500 event in Rotterdam saw him steadily propel through the rankings. With another tour-level title at the ATP 250 event in ‘s-Hertogenbosch in front of his home crowd and a final run at the ATP 500 event in Washington, Griekspoor kept improving.

Showing consistency on the Tour throughout last season, including notable wins over Alexander Zverev and Hubert Hurkacz, he reached a career-high No. 21 in November 2023.

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He made ATP Challenger Tour history
Griekspoor holds the ATP Challenger Tour record for most titles in a season, winning eight trophies in 2021. Nobody else has claimed more than six titles in a season (Benjamin Bonzi, Sebastian Baez, Facundo Bagnis, Juan Ignacio Chela, Younes El Aynaoui).

During the 2021 season, Griekspoor started his ATP Challenger Tour title run by winning in Prague in May, followed by wins in Bratislava and Amersfoort.

He then won five titles in a row, starting in Murcia, triumphing twice in Napoli, Tenerife, and the last one of the season in Bratislava again. He finished the season with an impressive 8-0 record in the Challenger finals.

He also holds the record longest winning streak at the Challenger level in a single season with 25 wins in the same season.

The Dutchman is yet to win a match against Alcaraz
Griekspoor trails the Spaniard 0-3 in the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series.

He has never taken a set off the four-time major champion. All the losses have come on big stages and three different surfaces, at 2022 Wimbledon, the 2023 BNP Paribas Open and the 2024 Paris Olympics.

“Wasn’t my best match, I lost in three. I thought that on grass, if you want to beat the guy at some surface, it would have been grass in my eyes. But he played well there, I didn’t play too great,” Griekspoor said ahead of their 2023 Indian wells match. “He’s one of the best players in the world, that’s for sure. He’s so young. He’s injured, he comes back straight away, he plays so well. So it’s going to be really tough, but at the end I really like the challenge of playing him. Why not?”

<img alt=”Carlos Alcaraz defeated Tallon Griekspoor to reach the third round of the Paris Olympics.” style=”width:100%;” src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/09/28/22/04/griekspoor-alcaraz-olympics-2024.jpg?w=100%25″ />
Photo credit: Matthew Stockman/Getty Images
Tennis runs in the family
Born in Haarlem, Netherlands, Griekspoor started playing tennis at the age of six. His older twin brothers Scott Griekspoor and Kevin Griekspoor are former players. As a kid, he used to join the two during their lessons. Scott climbed to a career-high ranking of No. 205 and Kevin reached World No. 655.

In 2018, both Tallon and Scott won Challenger titles.

“I always had two guys to look up to, six years older,” Griekspoor said. “They were much better and stronger than me at that time, so I really enjoyed that.”

His mother Monique is also a tennis instructor.

Family’s racing history
Griekspoor’s father Ron is a former motocross driver.

“I didn’t do [motocross] that much myself. I did it for fun. The other side of my family, my nephews, they’re doing it professionally. In the family it’s tennis and motocross,” Griekspoor said. “Almost every weekend when it’s on, I’m watching it. It’s just part of my youth. I grew up with it and I really, really like it.”

The 28-year-old is also a big Formula One fan and enjoys watching fellow Dutchman Max Verstappen.

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Down the T: Sharky's rapid fire with Ben Shelton

  • Posted: Sep 28, 2024

Who is the one person Ben Shelton would never reach out to in an emergency?

Hint: It’s the same person who he thinks is the biggest trash talker.

“Frances Tiafoe would not answer the phone. He’s not answering,” Shelton joked about one of his best friends on tour.

Who is someone outside Top 20 in the PIF ATP Rankings that Shelton hates to play? And the big question: Who does Shelton think is the greatest player of all time?

Watch social media influencer Sharky put the 21-year-old American on the spot in the latest Down the T interview. Find out Shelton’s answers in the full video below.

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Alcaraz meets table tennis stars in China

  • Posted: Sep 28, 2024

Carlos Alcaraz, who won the silver medal at the Paris Olympics earlier this year, crossed paths with fellow athletes and Paris Olympics medalists on Friday in Beijing. He met table tennis singles and team silver medalist Truls Moregardh of Sweden, French team bronze medalists Alexis Lebrun and Felix Lebrun, and Simon Gauzy.

The players were in attendance for Alcaraz’s opening match against Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard. The Spaniard, making a second appearance at the China Open, met the players after his straight-sets win against the Frenchman. The table tennis stars are in China for an event that runs through 6 October.

The Lebrun brothers are friends with Eduoard Roger-Vasselin, who is competing in doubles with Santiago Gonzalez at the China Open. The countrymen watched the conclusion of the Alcaraz-Mpetshi Perricard match together.

“I have always enjoyed watching tennis and my brother (Alexis) and I try to play tennis when we are back home in Montpellier,” said Felix, No. 5 in the World Table Tennis rankings.

“It was great to go to the China Open and see the best tennis players and also meet the different players like Alcaraz and (Daniil) Medvedev. Carlos is so fast and very dynamic on the court. He’s very good to watch and he is a nice guy as well. When we met him we talked a little bit about the Olympics and a little bit about his match, but it was a pleasure to meet him and it was great to watch him play.”

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“My experience at the China Open was fantastic, great players, great people, great arena, fantastic tennis matches, super high quality and activities for the fans to come and watch,” Moregardh said. “There are so many different foods to eat and I really enjoyed my stay at the China Open.”

Co-tournament director Lars Graff also expressed his pride in having the medalists at the tournament.

“They really enjoyed coming to the China Open and I enjoyed going to WTT to see how they conduct a world-class table tennis tournament,” he said.

Second seed Alcaraz will play Tallon Griekspoor in his bid for a quarter-final spot. He leads the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series 3-0.

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Medvedev solves Mannarino riddle in Beijing

  • Posted: Sep 28, 2024

A year ago, Daniil Medvedev made the final in Beijing. Will this be the edition when he breaks through and lifts the trophy at the China Open?

The third seed improved his chances by defeating familiar foe Adrian Mannarino 7-6(6), 6-2 in the second round on Saturday to book his quarter-final spot. He is now three wins from claiming his first tour-level title of 2024.

“It’s not easy to play, so I am happy that [in] the tie-break, [I] managed to save a set point,” Medvedev said. “Two good serves, then return in the court, which was not enough. But tough match, tough battle, happy to win.”

The No. 5 player in the PIF ATP Rankings had to dig deep against the Frenchman, who has always been a tough opponent for him. Down a set point at 5/6 in the first-set tie-break, Medvedev escaped when his opponent missed a return. He then looked more comfortable as the match progressed.

After exchanging service breaks early on in the second set, he took the lead by hitting a blistering forehand down the line to break Mannarino’s serve again. There was no looking back for him as he made quick work of the Frenchman from there, winning four games in a row to seal the match in one hour, 41 minutes. He leveled the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series at 4-4.

Medvedev fired eight aces and won 80 per cent of his first-serve points. He finished having converted four out of six break points, according to Infosys ATP Stats.

With the win, Medvedev advanced to his 75th tour-level quarter-final and eighth of the season. The 20-time tour-level titlist will next take on rising Italian Flavio Cobolli, who eliminated qualifier Pavel Kotov 6-4, 6-2.

“Titles are more important obviously than finals. But even then 75 quarter-finals are great,” Medvedev said. “When I made my first quarter-final [it] was [in] Moscow and I was pretty happy. And now it’s 75. I am still happy, but not the same way. But if you want to win the tournament you need to be in the quarter-finals.”

Medvedev is fourth in the PIF ATP Live Race to Turin. The 28-year-old aims to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals for the sixth consecutive year.

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Murray & Peers save MP to advance to Beijing QFs

  • Posted: Sep 28, 2024

Qualifiers Jamie Murray and John Peers saved a match point against Brazilians Rafael Matos and Marcelo Melo to win 7-6(7), 3-6, 12-10 Saturday and advance to the quarter-finals of the China Open in Beijing.

Murray and Peers, who reached the 2015 Wimbledon final, faced match point at 9/10 in the match tie-break, having squandered one of their own at 9/8. The duo recovered to win the next three points and seal the match in one hour, 53 minutes. They won 79 per cent of first-serve points, according to Infosys ATP Stats, en route to victory.

Murray and Peers next face Francisco Cerundolo and Nicolas Jarry, who upset second seeds and Australian Open champions Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden 7-5, 7-6(4). Flavio Cobolli and Lorenzo Musetti also shocked Neal Skupski and Michael Venus 6-2, 6-7(4), 10-7, with the Italians converting five of the nine break points they earned to down the fourth seeds.

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Draper/Machac Reach Tokyo QFs

Jack Draper and Tomas Machac matched their last eight singles runs in Tokyo by reaching the quarter-finals in the doubles. The pair rallied to upset third seeds and recent Chengdu Open champions, Sadio Doumbia and Fabien Reboul,  5-7, 6-2, 10-8 on Saturday at the Kinoshita Group Japan Open Tennis Championships.

Draper and Machac won 84 per cent of their first-serve points to down the French duo, who sit 13th in the PIF ATP Doubles Race. Machac earlier caused another upset in his singles, overcoming Tommy Paul to advance to the last eight, where he faces #NextGenATP star Alex Michelsen.

Draper and Machac meet Ariel Behar and Robert Galloway next, who shocked top seeds Nathaniel Lammons and Jackson Withrow 6-7(4), 6-4, 10-7. Julian Cash and Lloyd Glasspool advanced to the quarter-finals via walkover after Ben Shelton and Jordan Thompson withdrew due to Thompson suffering a back injury.

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Sinner seals QF spot with another Beijing comeback

  • Posted: Sep 28, 2024

Jannik Sinner’s steely resilience has been on full display so far this week at the China Open.

The No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings on Saturday notched his second consecutive comeback win at this year’s edition of the ATP 500 in Beijing. Sinner rallied past Roman Safiullin 3-6, 6-2, 6-3 to maintain his record of having reached at least the quarter-finals at every tour-level event he has played in 2024.

After coming from a set down to oust Nicolas Jarry in the opening round, Sinner again found himself in trouble in the Chinese capital after the free-hitting Safiullin broke serve twice en route to the opening set. Yet the top seed responded emphatically to seal a two-hour, 22-minute triumph on the Capital Group Diamond Court.

Sinner’s raw power and consistency from the baseline gradually wore down his opponent, and the Italian won seven straight games from 2-2 in the second set to take control of the second-round encounter. Sinner finished the match having converted four of 13 break points he earned against Safiullin, according to Infosys ATP Stats.

With his 57th tour-level triumph of 2024, Sinner tied Alexander Zverev for the most victories this season. The next challenge for the Italian in Beijing will be a last-eight meeting with Jiri Lehecka, who earlier overcame Roberto Bautista Agut 3-6, 6-2, 6-1.

Saturday’s victory was another small step towards becoming ATP Year-End No. 1 presented by PIF for Sinner. He is the runaway leader in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin, in which his current advantage over second-placed Zverev stands at 2,985 points.

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Two-time champ Nishikori topples Thompson in Tokyo, faces Rune next

  • Posted: Sep 28, 2024

Kei Nishikori’s bid for a hat-trick of titles at the Kinoshita Group Japan Open Tennis Championships is building momentum.

The home favourite on Saturday breezed past Jordan Thompson 6-2, 6-3 to reach the quarter-finals at his home ATP 500 for the sixth time in 11 main-draw appearances. Nishikori broke his opponent’s serve five times in a commanding 83-minute performance inside Ariake Coliseum, where he previously lifted the trophy in 2012 and 2014.

“I think I played a little bit too good,” joked Nishikori after the match. “I surprised myself, maybe my team is also a little bit surprised. I played really well. Very solid, very focused. This is how I wanted to play. Play aggressive with not many mistakes. It was almost perfect today.”

Nishikori was razor sharp on return throughout his second-round victory, particularly when facing second serves. The Japanese star won 67 per cent (14/21) of points against Thompson’s second delivery, according to Infosys ATP Stats, en route to reaching his first ATP 500 quarter-final since Washington 2021.

With his seventh tour-level victory of his injury-disrupted 2024, the former No. 4 in the PIF ATP Rankings Nishikori improved to 3-1 in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series against the Australian.

“For sure this was the best match so far this year,” said Nishikori. “Jordan is not an easy player to play against. He is very solid and has a good serve. Not easy to play against, but I really handled it well today.”

Awaiting Nishikori in the last eight will be sixth seed Holger Rune, who ended the hopes of another Japanese star, Yoshihito Nishioka. Rune eased to a 6-2, 6-4 triumph in just 67 minutes to reach the quarter-finals on his Tokyo debut.

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