Are exhibitions impacting 'tight' tennis calendar?
Carlos Alcaraz said in September the tennis schedule will “kill us in some way” – but can anything be done in a calendar packed with big-money tournaments?
Carlos Alcaraz said in September the tennis schedule will “kill us in some way” – but can anything be done in a calendar packed with big-money tournaments?
The PIF ATP Live Race To Turin continues to heat up with three weeks remaining for players to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals. With two ATP 500 events this week, the Swiss Indoors Basel and Erste Bank Open, contenders for the season finale have an opportunity to earn vital points.
Seventh-placed Casper Ruud and eighth-placed Andrey Rublev will both try to shore up their standing this week when they compete in Basel. Ruud is 225 points ahead of Rublev, who owns a 265-point edge over ninth-placed Alex de Minaur.
“When you’re in this position, you think about [the Nitto ATP Finals] quite a lot, of course,” Ruud said in Basel. “It’s a fun chase and it’s exciting… It’s good to have something to really motivate yourself with.”
PIF ATP Live Race To Turin (as of 20 October)
| Player | Points |
| 7) Casper Ruud | 3,845 |
| 8) Andrey Rublev | 3,620 |
| 9) Alex de Minaur | 3,355 |
| 10) Tommy Paul | 3,135 |
| 11) Grigor Dimitrov | 3,100 |
| 12) Stefanos Tsitsipas | 2,875 |
Ruud last qualified for the Nitto ATP Finals in 2022, when he advanced to the championship match (lost to Novak Djokovic). The Norwegian is in good position to earn his place in the season finale for the third time and can further improve his chances with a strong performance in Switzerland.
The 25-year-old is the second seed in Basel and will play Antwerp champion Roberto Bautista Agut in the first round. It is a difficult opening matchup for Ruud, who trails Bautista Agut 1-2 in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series.
[ATP APP]Rublev is trying to qualify for the year-end championships for the fifth consecutive season. He is in the final qualifying position, but will be keen to make a deep run this week to build his advantage over the chasing pack, led by De Minaur.
The Australian has never qualified for the Nitto ATP Finals, but could improve his chances of competing at Inalpi Arena by advancing through the Vienna draw. De Minaur will open his tournament against Jan-Lennard Struff.
Another player seeking his first Nitto ATP Finals qualification is 10th-placed Tommy Paul, who improved his standing by winning the Stockholm title. The American is 485 points behind Rublev for the final qualifying spot, making a deep run in Vienna critical. Paul faces a tricky challenge in the first round against countryman Brandon Nakashima.
Eleventh-placed Grigor Dimitrov, the Stockholm runner-up and 2017 Nitto ATP Finals champion, is competing in Vienna. Stefanos Tsitsipas, the 2019 season finale winner, is in action in Basel.
[NEWSLETTER FORM]Countries participating in the 2025 United Cup have been placed into their groups and assigned to host cities in Perth and Sydney following today’s draw in Sydney.
Perth
| A | C | E |
| USA | Greece | China |
| Canada | Kazakhstan | Germany |
| Combined #2 | Spain | Brazil |
Sydney
| B | D | F |
| Poland | Italy | Great Britain |
| Czechia | France | Australia |
| Norway | Switzerland | Combined #1 |
The schedule will be released Tuesday in Australia, when tickets for the group stage in Perth and Sydney go on sale at 5:00 p.m. local time in the respective cities.
Host nation Australia was drawn in Group F in Sydney alongside Great Britain, pitting Aussie No. 1 Alex De Minaur against his girlfriend Katie Boulter. Group F will also feature one of two teams to be announced in late November. Also in Sydney, Poland headlines Group B with Iga Swiatek and Hubert Hurkacz (pictured above). Italy headlines Group D with Jasmine Paoline and Flavio Cobolli.
Defending champion Germany, with Alexander Zverev and Laura Siegemund, head to Perth and will compete in Group E along with China and Brazil. The United States, with Coco Gauff and Taylor Fritz, head Group A in Perth. Greece with Stefanos Tsitsipas and Maria Sakkari, lead Group C in Perth.
The celebration of Dominic Thiem’s storied career has begun at the Erste Bank Open.
The former No. 3 in the PIF ATP Rankings was honoured on a special ‘Super Sunday’ at the indoor hard-court ATP 500 in Vienna. After Thiem played an exhibition set against Alexander Zverev — the man he defeated to win his only major title at the 2020 US Open — a host of tennis and other sporting icons gathered to pay tribute to the retiring star.
“It was an incredible journey. You were the most important ones, opponents and friends and it was always a pleasure to be with you,” said Thiem after walking through a guard of honour that included his ATP Tour rivals Frances Tiafoe, Matteo Berrettini and Jack Draper, as well as his former coach Nicolas Massu and Germans Boris Becker, Tommy Haas and Matthias Bachinger. “It means so much to me that you were there today.”
Things we love to see 🤗#DankeDomi | @ErsteBankOpen pic.twitter.com/Rzvtm4RX51
— ATP Tour (@atptour) October 20, 2024
Thiem is a huge star in Austria and has been a highly popular presence on the ATP Tour with fans and fellow players alike since he turned pro in 2011. He lifted 17 tour-level trophies before his career was disrupted by a serious wrist injury in 2021. Although he returned to competing in 2022, he was unable to rediscover his best form and announced in May that 2024 would be his final season on Tour.
Thiem still has one final ATP Tour event to play before he hangs up his racquet. The 31-year-old will take on Luciano Darderi in the first-round in Vienna, where he lifted the title in 2019.
“I couldn’t have imagined a better last Sunday in Vienna. I hope to see many of you again on Tuesday,” said Thiem to his home crowd. “It hurts incredibly that the journey is over, but it was a wonderful time.”
Former rivals of Thiem to pay tribute to the Austrian at the Wiener Stadthalle included Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, who appeared in a pre-recorded tribute video. Thiem is one of only two players (alongside Andy Murray) to have earned at least five Lexus ATP Head2Head victories against each of the ‘Big Three’.
“You were always a super guy, also off the court,” said Federer in German. “Always fair. Your friendship was important on the Tour. We always got on well, and it was great for me. All the best with the future, and huge congratulations on your unbelievable career, Dominic. I am sure we will see each other soon, but for now, have a great evening.”
Djokovic said: “Thank you very much for all that you have given to all of us, but particularly tennis. I’m glad that you have the opportunity to say goodbye in Vienna. One last dance. I wish you a great tournament, with all your family members present, and celebrate it, because you deserve it my friend. All the best.”
Zverev earlier also made his own tribute on court.
“First and foremost, I’m losing a friend on the Tour, but of course we also played the greatest matches together. But it’s goodbye, not goodbye,” said the German, expressing what many Thiem fans are thinking: ”I hope he gets bored in a year or two and comes back to the Tour again.”
[NEWSLETTER FORM]
Top seed Alexander Zverev and Matteo Berrettini are among the stars headlining action on Monday at the Erste Bank Open.
Zverev will be aiming to reignite the form that drove him to success in the Austrian capital in 2021 when he gets his 2024 campaign underway against #NextGenATP wild card Joel Schwaerzler. Berrettini eyes a fourth ATP Tour title of the year and faces qualifier Marton Fucsovics in his opener.
View the full Monday order of play below to see who is competing, on which court, and when they are scheduled.
[ATP APP]ORDER OF PLAY – MONDAY, 21 OCTOBER 2024
Center Court – start at 2pm
Flavio Cobolli (ITA) vs Alejandro Davidovich Fokina (ESP)
[Q] Marton Fucsovics vs Matteo Berrettini (ITA)
Not Before 6pm
[1] Alexander Zverev (GER) vs [WC] Joel Schwaerzler (AUT)
[8] Alexei Popyrin (AUS) vs [Q] Jakub Mensik (CZE)
#Glaubandich – start 2pm
Rafael Matos (BRA) / Marcelo Melo (BRA) vs Neal Skupski (GBR) / Michael Venus (NZL)
[1] Marcelo Arevalo (ESA) / Mate Pavic (CRO) vs Luciano Darderi (ITA) / Mariano Navone (ARG)
Sander Gille (BEL) / Joran Vliegen (BEL) vs [4] Nathaniel Lammons (USA) / Jackson Withrow (USA)
The Swiss Indoors Basel main draw begins Monday, with some of the world’s biggest stars in action. Among those on the order of player are top seed Andrey Rublev and surging #NextGenATP Frenchman Arthur Fils.
View the full Monday order of play below to see who is competing, on which court, and when they are scheduled.
[ATP APP]ORDER OF PLAY – MONDAY, 21 OCTOBER 2024
Centre Court – start 2 p.m.
[5] Ugo Humbert (FRA) vs [Q] Jerome Kym (SUI)
[Q] Daniel Altmaier (GER) vs [7] Arthur Fils (FRA)
Starts At 6:30 p.m.
Opening Ceremony
Not Before 8 p.m.
[1] Andrey Rublev vs Nuno Borges (POR)
IWB Court 1 – start 12 p.m.
Sebastian Baez (ARG) / Alexander Bublik (KAZ) vs [2] Santiago Gonzalez (MEX) / Edouard Roger-Vasselin (FRA)
[1] Wesley Koolhof (NED) / Nikola Mektic (CRO) vs Francisco Cerundolo (ARG) / Tomas Martin Etcheverry (ARG)
Roberto Carballes Baena (ESP) vs Matteo Arnaldi (ITA)
[Q] James Duckworth (AUS) vs Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard (FRA)
Not Before 9:15 p.m.
[WC] Henry Bernet (SUI) / Jerome Kym (SUI) vs Nicolas Jarry (CHI) / Alejandro Tabilo (CHI)
“Thank you”, Toni Nadal wrote on Instagram when his nephew Rafael Nadal announced his retirement from professional tennis on 10 October. One week later, the Spanish coach provided a more in-depth reaction with a three-page post full of emotional messages for the 22-time Grand Slam champion.
“There are athletes who, thanks to their huge ability, have managed to become greats in their discipline. Some of them have managed to grow or even transcend their sport, and just a few, because of their attitude and the way they operate, have transcended sport itself and become role models for society,” said Toni in the post.
“I think, without fear of speaking out of turn, and openly accepting any criticism that may come my way after saying this as his uncle, that my nephew, just like his biggest rival for many years, Roger Federer, forms part of the latter category.”
Toni, who coached Rafa from childhood and on the ATP Tour until 2017, is in no doubt about his reasons for his statement. The main one is that his 38-year-old nephew, apart from so much sporting success, has inspired millions of people to never give up, no matter the obstacles in the way.
“Today I can emphatically state that Rafael has fulfilled his promise to me a few years ago in a conversation we had at a club,” said Toni. “I told him that a well-known ex-player had admitted to me how unsatisfied he was with his tennis career. What he sincerely regretted, rather than not winning more titles, was his lack of perseverance.
“Because of my own fears, I urged my nephew never to make that mistake and, with more assurance than I anticipated, Rafael answered: ‘Don’t worry, Toni. When my time comes, I will have the peace of mind that I gave my all’.”
[ATP APP]The numbers he leaves in his wake show just how true he was to his word. As well as currently being the male player with the second-most Grand Slam titles (only behind Novak Djokovic’s 24), Nadal was No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings for 209 weeks and won 92 tour-level titles, as well as 1,092 matches, all despite a long list of injuries.
“Something else happened that allowed him to delay his farewell. He learned for many years to live with pain, he overcame it on many occasions and, despite the doubts and uncertainty, sometimes he was able to come through it not only victoriously, but even stronger,” added Toni in his post.
“In difficult times, I would repeat something to him that I have now written here: ‘Rafael, life has treated us better than we expected and much better than we deserved.’ Rafael’s career has been very successful, far exceeding my expectations, as much as I always had an unwavering faith in him.”
Rafael Nadal most recently compared at the Paris Olympics, where he lost to Novak Djokovic in the second round; and on the ATP Tour at the ATP 250 in Bastad, where he lost to Nuno Borges in the final. His last appearance will be at the Davis Cup in November, when he plays in Malaga for Spain.
There, he will put the icing on a stunning career that he began to prepare for with his uncle during his childhood in Manacor.
“Today my mind was filled with nostalgic images, memories, moments I experienced and shared beside Rafael,” Toni also said.
“Everything that has happened between those long-gone years and this end point, from his first wins at the Under-12 and Under-14 tournaments, which gave us a glimpse of what was to come, to his final great triumphs in Melbourne and Paris, is the manifestation of an almost perfect dream.”
[NEWSLETTER FORM]Roberto Bautista Agut returned to the winner’s circle on the ATP Tour for the first time since 2022 with a ruthless showing in Sunday’s championship match at the European Open in Antwerp.
The 36-year-old defeated Jiri Lehecka 7-5, 6-1 to become the second-oldest tour-level champion this year (Djokovic, 37, Paris Olympics). Bautista Agut produced an imperious display of serving in the first set and showed his trademark grit to outlast the Czech in many of the longer exchanges in the second, sealing victory in one hour, 15 minutes.
“This one is very special,” said Bautista Agut, who improved to 12-11 in tour-level finals. “I broke my foot last year and I had to fight so hard this year. I went back to 120 in the world, but I was still going to practice with a smile on my face, trying to be a better player, to fight until the end of my career. I think I deserved a week like this.”
The moment @BautistaAgut captured the title 🏆✨@EuroTennisOpen | #EuropeanOpen pic.twitter.com/P1gjzFik8R
— ATP Tour (@atptour) October 20, 2024
Having been forced to go through qualifying at nine tournaments this year, Bautista Agut struggled to make many inroads in tournaments. However, this week in Antwerp, the Spaniard ignited some of his most steely tennis to claim a first indoor title since 2016.
Bautista Agut improved to 4-1 in the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series, having lost their most recent battle in the second round of the China Open last month. With his title-winning week, the Spaniard will return to the Top 50 of the PIF ATP Rankings for the first time in 12 months.
[ATP APP]Lehecka, who was bidding to clinch his second ATP Tour title of the year, came unstuck by the physicality required to go toe-to-toe with Bautista Agut, who dominated from both wings.
In a near-flawless first set, Bautista Agut won 86 per cent (24/28) of points behind his first delivery, according to Infosys ATP Stats. Lehecka did claw back a break of serve in the tenth game but it was to little avail as he lost serve to love in the 12th to hand his opponent the lead.
Bautista Agut kept his foot on the gas to pull clear in the early stages of the second set and, once he had dismantled Lehecka’s serve for a fourth time, he served out the match with ease.
[NEWSLETTER FORM]Tommy Paul won his first ATP Tour title in Stockholm in 2021 and on Sunday the American became a champion at the ATP 250 event again.
Fourth seed Paul defeated third seed Grigor Dimitrov 6-4, 6-3 in the BNP Paribas Nordic Open final to claim his third ATP Tour title of the season. The American did not lose a set all week and lifted the trophy after one hour and 25 minutes.
“I feel like every match I played a little bit better and better,” Paul said. “Today I came out playing amazing, so I was definitely happy with the performance.”
2X CHAMPION IN STOCKHOLM 🏆🏆@TommyPaul | @sthlm_open | #bnpparibasnordicopen pic.twitter.com/RKH0KYIbDt
— ATP Tour (@atptour) October 20, 2024
It was a critical win for the 27-year-old’s Nitto ATP Finals dreams. The American is trying to qualify for the season finale for the first time and by claiming the crown in Stockholm ascended to 10th in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin, passing Dimitrov by beating the Bulgarian in the championship match.
Paul now trails eighth-placed Andrey Rublev by 495 points in the Live Race. He will try to further narrow the deficit next week in Vienna.
The American put himself in that position with a flawless performance in Stockholm, where he played two tie-breaks and the next-closest set he played was 6-4. He won five of his eight sets by a margin of 6-3 or greater.
[ATP APP]Paul won only 65 per cent of his first-serve points against Dimitrov according to Infosys ATP Stats, but it proved inconsequential. The two-time Stockholm champion masterfully handled the Bulgarian’s tricky backhand slice and changed directions at the most opportune times to control rallies.
The American crushed an inside-out backhand return winner from the deuce court to secure the critical break at 4-3 in the second set and held without trouble to secure the title. He has also lifted trophies in Dallas and Queen’s Club in 2024.
“It’s a very special place for me,” Paul said during the trophy ceremony. “This is where I got my first title a few years ago and to come out and play the level of tennis I did this week, it’s been a dream.”
Paul is the fourth player to win at least three tour-level titles this season, joining Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz and Matteo Berrettini. His win against Dimitrov was his fourth Top 10 victory of the season (4-5).
[NEWSLETTER FORM]Harri Heliovaara and Henry Patten took a strong step towards securing their qualification for the Nitto ATP Finals after capturing their fourth tour-level title of the season at the BNP Paribas Nordic Open.
The top seeds exuded confidence throughout the week in Stockholm, underpinned by a commanding 7-5, 6-3 triumph against Czechs Patrik Rikl and Petr Nouza in Sunday’s championship match.
[ATP APP]“For me, it’s pretty much a home tournament, it’s the closest one we can come to,” said Heliovaara, who is from Finland. “It also felt special because I got to share it with my three-year-old daughter, who has been here all week.”
“It’s probably my second favourite place to play in,” added Patten. “I came to Stockholm for the first time last year and I was desperate to come back, it’s such a pleasure to play here.”
With titles in Marrakech, Lyon, Wimbledon, and Stockholm, Patten/Heliovaara currently occupy eighth in the PIF ATP Live Doubles Teams Rankings, 592 points ahead of ninth-placed Nathaniel Lammons and Jackson Withrow. After joining forces in April, the British-Finnish duo is aiming to make its debut appearance at the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin.
Erler/Miedler reign in Antwerp
At the European Open in Antwerp, Alexander Erler and Lucas Miedler clinched their first ATP Tour title of the season. The Austrians held their nerve to edge Robert Galloway and Aleksandr Nedovyesov 6-4, 1-6, 10-8, prevailing in their second Match Tie-break of the week.
The champions won just four points on return throughout the second set, according to Infosys ATP Stats, but seized their moment to seal victory on their first match point. It marks the first title the pair have clinched on indoor hard courts since their fairytale run at their home tournament in Vienna in 2022.
With the triumph, Erler and Miedler are up to 23rd in the PIF ATP Live Doubles Teams Rankings, now with six career titles as a pair.
<img alt=”Lucas Miedler and Alexander Erler ” style=”width:100%;” src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/10/20/15/37/erler-miedler-antwerp-2024-sunday.jpg” />
Photo Credit: BelgaImage
Kadhe/Bollipalli triumph in Almaty
Rithvik Choudary Bollipalli and Arjun Kadhe saved five match points in a thrilling Almaty Open final to clinch their maiden ATP Tour title.
The Indians came back from the brink to defeat Nicolas Barrientos and Skander Mansouri 3-6, 7-6(3), 14-12 in one hour, 41 minutes.
<img alt=”Rithvik Choudary Bollipalli and Arjun Kadhe” style=”width:100%;” src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/10/20/15/33/kadhe-bollipalli.jpg” />
Photo Credit: KTF.kz