The Croatian duo of Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic won its third ATP Tour title of the 2022 season on Sunday with a comeback victory in the Cinch Championships final. The second seeds won their third Match Tie-break in as many matches to secure a 3-6, 7-6(3), 10-6 victory against Lloyd Glasspool and Harri Heliovaara at The Queen’s Club in London.

“I was a little kid watching this tournament so many times,” Mektic said during the trophy ceremony. “This is my first ever match on this court and it really is like a dream to hold this trophy now.”

Pavic shared similar sentiments after claiming his 12th tour-level title with his countryman. “I haven’t played on this court since 2018, and it’s always a special feeling to be here, to play on this court,” he said. “It’s an amazing feeling and we’re happy to win the title.”

The reigning Wimbledon champions never trailed in the second-set tie-break or the Match Tie-break as they answered back following a lightning start from their opponents. 

With Great Britain’s Glasspool and Finland’s Heliovaara buoyed by the support of the London crowd, the unseeded duo raced through the opening three games of the match with the loss of just one point. But their early break came on their lone break point of the contest as Mektic and Pavic began to find their range.

The Croatians created four break chances in the second set, but made their breakthrough in the tie-break behind a pair of early mini-breaks. Big serving and fast reflexes helped them maintain that advantage and send the match to a decider.

Champs at Queen’s 👑

2021 Wimbledon champions @NMektic & Pavic defeat Glasspool/ Heliovaara 3-6 7-6 10-6 to claim the Queen’s title!#cinchChampionships pic.twitter.com/67IJqajbFv

— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) June 19, 2022

The Match Tie-break was a back-and-forth affair, with Mektic/Pavic again scoring a pair of early mini-breaks only for Glasspool/Heliovaara to get back on serve at 5-6. The Croatians brought up match point with more strong work on serve and at net, and won a lengthy rally to seal the title. They closed by winning four of the match’s final five points, including the last three.

Mektic and Pavic completed their first season together in 2021 as the No. 1 team in the Pepperstone ATP Doubles Team Rankings, winning nine titles including the Tokyo Olympics and three ATP Masters 1000s. With Sunday’s victory, they improved to 90-24 as a team, including 12-5 in finals and 15-1 on grass.

Hubert Hurkacz produced one of the performances of the 2022 grass season so far on Sunday at the Terra Wortmann Open in Halle, where the Pole dismantled World No.1 Daniil Medvedev in the championship match to claim his first title for 2022.

The fifth seed broke Medvedev three times on his way to a quickfire 6-1, 6-4 win that secured his maiden tour-level trophy on grass. The 2021 Wimbledon semi-finalist was imperious behind his serve and dominant from the baseline as he eased to the first ATP 500 crown of his career in just 63 minutes on OWL Arena.

“I’m super excited, I’ve been waiting a little bit for my first Awesome Hurkacz Races Past Medvedev To Halle Title this year,” said Hurkacz in his on-court interview. “I’m happy to win my first ATP 500 title and of course, on the grass it is very special.

“I was serving pretty good today and got a little bit of momentum from the first game. I saved a couple of deuces on my service game and then I managed to break Daniil’s serve so I definitely got a little bit of momentum. I’m very happy with the win in front of such a great crowd here.”

With his fifth tour-level title, Hurkacz will rise two spots to No. 10 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings. He becomes the seventh player in the Open Era have won their first five championship matches at tour-level, a group that includes current World No. 7 Carlos Alcaraz.

Medvedev was playing in a grass-court final for the second consecutive week. However, just as he had against Tim Van Rijthoven in ‘s-Hertogenbosch a week ago, the World No. 1 struggled to find his top level throughout the championship match. Medvedev is now 0-3 for tour-level finals in 2022 as he hunts his first title since lifting the trophy at the US Open last September.

Hurkacz had come through his quarter-final against Felix Auger-Aliassime and his semi-final against Nick Kyrgios without breaking serve once, but the Pole made immediate inroads in the championship match as he broke twice to race to a 5-0 lead early. The fifth seed stayed aggressive with his groundstrokes yet barely missed as he gave his opponent few opportunities to dictate points. Hurkacz fired fired eight winners, including five aces in the opener to move ahead.

Medvedev’s frustration began to show as Hurkacz broke again in the first game of the second set, and although the World No. 1 did raise his level on serve, he was unable to make any impact on the powerful Hurkacz delivery. The early break proved enough for the Pole to seal a comprehensive victory having won 84 per cent (32/38) of points behind his first serve in the match and without facing a break point.

The win moves Hurkacz into a 3-2 lead in his ATP Head2Head series with Medvedev. The 25-year-old also won the pair’s only previous meeting this season, in the quarter-finals of the Miami Open presented by Itau in March.

“Daniil is an unbelievable player,” said Hurkacz. “He’s the best player in the world so it’s very tricky to play him. All the right shots went my way at the beginning, so I definitely gained a lot of momentum from that.”

“Congrats Hubert, great match today, great week,” said Medvedev during the presentation ceremony. “Congrats to you and your team. You guys are super nice. Hopefully a lot more matches to play on the biggest stage. Congrats for a great week and the title.”

Matteo Berrettini successfully retained his Cinch Championships title on Sunday, overcoming Filip Krajinovic 7-5, 6-4 to capture his seventh tour-level trophy and fourth on grass.

In front of a packed crowd, the Italian produced an aggressive performance. He fired 14 aces and demonstrated great footwork to dictate on his forehand and become the first player in the Open Era to win the title in both of his first two appearances in London.

“There are so many emotions,” Berrettini said during the trophy ceremony. “The last thing I expected was to come back from surgery and win two titles in a row, defend my title here at one of the most prestigious tournaments we have. I don’t want to cry. Most of the job is thanks to them, my team and my family. I just can’t believe it.”

The second seed has now won his past nine matches and lifted two trophies since he returned to Tour last week following three months out due to a hand injury.

The 26-year-old produced a strong performance to down Andy Murray in the BOSS OPEN final in Stuttgart last week and was equally as impressive against the Serbian Krajinovic to triumph at the ATP 500 event in one hour and 34 minutes.

Berrettini now leads the 30-year-old 3-0 in their ATP Head2Head series, while he has improved his record on grass to 32-6, having won 20 of his past 21 matches on the surface.

“I arrived in Stuttgart and was not feeling great,” Berrettini said. “I was not hitting the ball how I wanted and I was like ‘Guys, I think it is going to be tough’. But it has gone pretty well!”

In a lively clash, breaks were exchanged in the middle of the first set as both players looked to find their rhythm on serve. Berrettini struck first when he planted a perfectly executed volley away to move ahead, but Krajinovic responded immediately as he broke back to level for 3-3. However, the Italian would not be denied, stepping up the intensity and power in his groundstrokes at the end of the set to clinch the opener after 54 minutes.

Fuelled by confidence, the second seed continued to go on the attack in the second set. He won 86 per cent (12/14) of his first-serve points as he pushed Krajinovic deep behind the baseline and gained the decisive break in the fifth game, before he held his nerve on serve to secure the title.

Krajinovic had never won a tour-level match on grass before this week, but produced a string of accomplished displays to defeat Jenson Brooksby, Sam Querrey, Ryan Peniston and Marin Cilic to reach his fifth tour-level final.

“It was an amazing past 10 days. Very emotional,” Krajinovic said during the trophy ceremony. “For me the first final on grass. You guys [the crowd] helped me so much. I felt like I was playing at home. Also congrats to Berrettini, two finals I have lost against him now.”

The Serbian, who was making his debut at The Queen’s Club, is up to No. 31 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings following his strong run. However, his wait for a maiden tour-level crown goes on.

Did You Know?
Berrettini has won the title at three of the past four grass-court events he has entered, with his one defeat coming in the Wimbledon final in 2021.

Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos held off a stirring late comeback from Tim Puetz and Michael Venus to clinch a maiden title of 2022 at the Terra Wortmann Open in Halle on Sunday.

A crashing forehand return winner from Granollers proved the moment of magic necessary to break the deadlock late on OWL Arena, where the top seeds prevailed 6-4, 6-7(5), 14-12 in a dramatic championship match to seal their first grass-court crown as a team.

Granollers and Zeballos had appeared on course for a more comfortable climax to a tight encounter when leading 5/0 in the Match Tie-break. Yet home favourite Puetz and New Zealander Venus rallied to force two match points of their own at 10/9 and 12/11, before Granollers intervention secured a seventh tour-level title for the Spanish-Argentine pairing.

“There was a bit of luck at the end of the match because you never know what is going to happen when you are 10/10 in the Match Tie-break,” said Granollers after the match. “I think it was a very good match, a good level from both teams. We were leading in the Match Tie-break, and sometimes it can happen that you get tight, but we’re very happy to win the tournament.”

“This is a really special moment for me,” said Zeballos. “I came here for the first time when I was 17 with my father. I met Roger [Federer] here, I played my first junior tournament, so what can I say. I have really nice memories, I’m so happy, I enjoyed the whole week, and now that we won the tournament it is perfect.”

Campeones 🇪🇸 🇦🇷@M_Granollers & @HoracioZeballos win the 2022 Halle title, saving match points on their way to defeating Puetz & Venus 6-4 6-7 14-12!#TWO22 pic.twitter.com/tbhoeVUJas

— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) June 19, 2022

A couple of key moments defined a tight first set in the teams’ maiden ATP Head2Head meeting. Granollers and Zeballos recovered a pair of break points to hold in the second game and were clinical when their chance came along, converting a deciding deuce point for 4-3 that proved enough to claim the opening set.

Puetz and Venus responded to dropping their first set of the week by staying solid, but the German-New Zealand duo was forced to wait until a tie-break to level the match as serve dominated the second set. The third seeds converted their third set point to take it 7/5, as the excited crowd urged home favourite Puetz and his partner Venus on.

There was no panic from Granollers and Zeballos, however, whose combination of precise serving and solid net play ultimately proved enough to overcome their opponents’ late charge and complete a one-hour, 52-minute win at the ATP 500 event.

It is a first tour-level title for Granollers and Zeballos since they lifted the trophy at the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati last August. The duo is now 7-4 in ATP Tour finals.

This week on the ATP Tour, the world’s best aim to bring their top grass-court level to a pair of ATP 250 events in Eastbourne and Mallorca.

Home favourite Cameron Norrie headlines the draw at the Rothesay International in Eastbourne, where Jannik Sinner, defending champion Alex de Minaur and 2019 titlist Taylor Fritz are also chasing success on the English south coast from 20-25 June.

Daniil Medvedev defends his crown at the Mallorca Championships, taking place on the Balearic island from 19-25 June. Those trying to stop the World No. 1 in Spain include Stefanos Tsitsipas, Denis Shapovalov and the in-form Nick Kyrgios.

ATPTour.com looks ahead at five things to watch at each event.

View Draws: Eastbourne | Mallorca

FIVE THINGS TO WATCH IN EASTBOURNE

1) Norrie & Sinner Headline: Norrie is the top seed in Eastbourne, where the World No. 11 seeks to bounce back from an opening-round defeat to Grigor Dimitrov at The Queen’s Club last week. The British No. 1 reached the quarter-finals in 2018 and arrives in Eastbourne boasting an impressive 26-14 record for 2022, including two ATP Tour titles.

Sinner is seeded second in his first tournament since retiring from his Roland Garros quarter-final against Andrey Rublev due to a left knee injury. The Italian is making his Eastbourne debut as he hunts his maiden grass-court crown and his first title in 2022.

2) De Minaur Defends Crown: The Australian picked up his fifth tour-level title in Eastbourne last year by defeating Lorenzo Sonego in the championship match. De Minaur is seeded sixth this time around on the English south coast, as he seeks improved results after just one win across two tournaments in ‘s-Hertogenbosch and London.

3) Fritz Heads American Charge: Another former champion, Taylor Fritz, leads a strong squad of Americans in Eastbourne. The World No. 14 fell at the first hurdle in ‘s-Hertogenbosch and London but the third seed arrives with a 21-10 record for the season as he seeks his second title of 2022 at a tournament where he lifted the trophy in 2019.

Fritz is joined in the draw by countrymen Tommy Paul, Frances Tiafoe, Sebastian Korda and Jenson Brooksby, as well as fifth seed Reilly Opelka, who opens against another American in Maxime Cressy.

4) Draper, Evans Lead British Hopes: As well as Norrie, World No. 31 Daniel Evans and #NextGenATP contender Jack Draper will be among those enjoying home support as they attempt to become the first British champion in Eastbourne since Greg Rusedski in 2003.

Evans was a quarter-finalist in 2021, while 20-year-old Draper will seek to back up his impressive defeat of Fritz in London last week with a strong showing on tournament debut. Wild card Ryan Peniston also made headlines at The Queen’s Club, clinching his maiden tour-level win against Casper Ruud and also defeating Francisco Cerundolo. The 26-year-old will hunt another upset in Eastbourne as he opens against eighth seed Holger Rune.

5) Defending Champs Mektic/Pavic: Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic seek to maintain their dominance on the grass courts of Great Britain as they defend their title in Eastbourne. The Croatian pairing also lifted the trophy at Wimbledon last year and are set to play for a third title together on the surface at the Cinch Championships on Sunday.

Their rivals in Eastbourne this week include second seeds and 2019 champions Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah, and Roland Garros finalists Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek.

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FIVE THINGS TO WATCH IN MALLORCA

1) Medvedev Defends Title: The World No. 1 clinched his maiden grass-court title on tournament debut in Mallorca last year and he has hit the ground running on the surface in 2022. Medvedev was a finalist in ‘s-Hertogenbosch a week ago and made it back-to-back ATP Tour finals this week at the Terra Wortmann Open in Halle, where he will play for his first title of the year against Hubert Hurkacz on Sunday.

2) Tsitsipas & Shapovalov Debuts: Second seed Stefanos Tsitsipas is 2-2 on grass this year but the Greek looked to have found his feet on the surface in Halle last week, despite a narrow second-round loss to Nick Kyrgios. The World No. 6 is making his debut in Mallorca, where he is chasing his second title of the year.

Another powerful 23-year-old, Denis Shapovalov, is seeking his first win of the year on grass as he makes his first appearance in Mallorca. The Canadian will hope to rediscover the form that took him to his maiden Grand Slam semi-final at Wimbledon in 2021.

3) Kyrgios To Kick On?: Kyrgios has looked in a confident mood in Germany in the past two weeks, reaching the semi-finals in Stuttgart and Halle. Despite narrow defeats to Andy Murray and Hubert Hurkacz in those respective final-four clashes, the big-serving Australian will be a major threat on tournament debut in Mallorca as he hunts his maiden tour-level crown on grass. Top seed Medvedev is a potential quarter-final opponent for the 27-year-old.

4) Spaniards Chase Home Success: Fourth seed Pablo Carreno Busta is the highest-ranked home hope in Mallorca, where he is chasing his first grass-court title. A semi-finalist in 2021, he can turn to countryman Feliciano Lopez for advice on how to go further on the surface — the wild card has won four of his seven tour-level titles on grass — while fifth seed Roberto Bautista Agut also has experience in that department, having lifted the trophy in ‘s-Hertogenbosch in 2014.

5) Arevalo/Rojer Top Seeds: Marcelo Arevalo and Jean-Julien Rojer’s eight-match winning streak was ended in the Halle semi-finals, but the El Salvadorian-Dutch pairing remains one of the form teams on the ATP Tour, having collected three titles since coming together at the start of the year. The Roland Garros champions are the top seeds in Mallorca, where their highest-ranked rivals are all-German duo Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies.

The first three members of Team World have been confirmed for the 2022 Laver Cup, to be held at The O2 in London from 23-25 September 2022.

Felix Auger-Aliassime, Taylor Fritz and Diego Schwartzman will join John McEnroe’s squad, giving Team World the top player in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings from Canada, the United States and Argentina.

All three players have represented Team World in previous Laver Cups. Both Auger-Aliassime and Fritz are making their second appearances, while Schwartzman returns for his third showing.

“These are tough competitors each with a track record now of beating the best and winning titles at the highest level,” McEnroe said. “They also understand Laver Cup competition and how matches can swing so easily. We have been extremely close to pulling off a Team World victory in four attempts and will have an excellent chance with Felix, Taylor and Diego on the team.”

World No. 9 Auger-Aliassime entered the Top 10 of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings for the first time in January and won the first ATP Tour title of his young career in Rotterdam in February. The 21-year-old made his Laver Cup debut against Matteo Berrettini last year in Boston, where he fell just short in a Match Tie-break in a two-hour, 52-minute match — the longest in the competition’s history.

“I’m excited to be returning for Team World,” Auger-Aliassime said. “Boston was a great first experience of Laver Cup and the atmosphere was very special. One year on, I feel confident that I can win points for Team World this time around.”

Indian Wells champion Fritz competed in the 2019 Laver Cup in Geneva, where he beat then-world No. 5 Dominic Thiem in what he called “one of the biggest wins of my career”. 

“I thrive in a team environment and Laver Cup really brings out the best in me,” said the World No. 14.

Schwartzman, a two-time ATP Tour finalist this season, has previously suited up for Team World in Chicago in 2018 and Boston in 2021.

“I have great memories of playing Laver Cup and forming such strong bonds with my teammates,” added Schwartzman. “I can’t wait to take part this year at The O2. The atmosphere will be out of this world.”

Under Laver Cup rules, the three highest-ranked players from Europe and the world on the qualification date (6 June) are invited to compete on the six-man teams. The remaining three places are held for captains’ picks.

Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer have been confirmed for Team Europe, with more player announcements to be made in the coming weeks.

Tim Puetz and Michael Venus defeated Roland Garros champions Marcelo Arevalo and Jean-Julien Rojer, 6-3, 6-4, on Saturday to reach the final of the Terra Wortmann Open in Halle.

The 34-year-olds from Germany and New Zealand have not dropped a set on the way to their third final of 2022 as they seek to add to their Dubai title from February. With the victory, they improved to 32-14 overall as a team, including 17-6 in 2022. The third seeds are 3-1 in finals as a duo, with their biggest title coming at the 2021 Rolex Paris Masters.

Prior to beating the Arevalo and Rojer in the semis, Puetz/Venus eliminated two-time Roland Garros champs Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies in the quarter-finals. They will face top seeds Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos in Sunday’s final; the Spanish-Argentine duo defeated Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek, 7-6(6), 6-7(4), 10-8 on Friday.

Frankfurt native Puetz is bidding to become the ninth German to win the Halle doubles title. He is seeking his eighth tour-level doubles title and can complete the ATP Tour set of four German titles after previous triumphs in Stuttgart (2018), Munich (2019), and Hamburg (2021).

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Queen’s Club Doubles Action Suspended
Harri Heliovaara and Lloyd Glasspool took a 7-5 opening set against Denis Shapovalov and Rohan Bopanna before play was suspended Saturday evening at the Cinch Championships due to slippery conditions on court. They will complete their match on Sunday, with a final meeting with second seeds Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic awaiting the winner. The second-seeded Croatians advanced to the final on Friday with a 5-7, 6-2, 10-8 win against Americans Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul.

For Shapovalov, this is his second match this week that has been carried over into a second day. He split the first two sets of his opening-round singles match against Paul before the American took the third set on Wednesday.