With his position atop the Pepperstone ATP Rankings on the line this week at the Rolex Paris Masters, Carlos Alcaraz opened his campaign with a 6-4, 6-4 victory against Yoshihito Nishioka on centre court. The Spaniard must reach the quarter-finals to guarantee a stay as World No. 1, with Rafael Nadal within striking distance should he win the title at the ATP Masters 1000 event.

Alcaraz was sharp in his first ATP Head2Head meeting with Nishioka, firing 30 winners and winning 11 of 12 net points in the one-hour, 12-minute contest. He hit nine aces in a strong serving performance, though he lost the only break point he faced as his Japanese opponent converted to level the opening set at 4-4.

Alcaraz responded with an immediate break back before serving out the opener, and used a finishing flurry to close out the match, winning 12 of the final 14 points. He recorded five love holds, including in his final service game, winning 85 per cent (29/34) of his first-serve points.

The Spaniard awaits Grigor Dimitrov or Fabio Fognini in the third round, with Andrey Rublev, Hubert Hurkacz and Holger Rune potential quarter-final opponents.

Nishioka finalises his 2022 ATP Tour season at 19-17, his best result a title run in Seoul last month. The 27-year-old was seeking his first career win against a reigning World No. 1.

Felix Auger-Aliassime produced a remarkable recovery to fend off Mikael Ymer and extend his winning streak to 14 matches on Wednesday at the Rolex Paris Masters.

After dropping the first set against the Swede, Auger-Aliassime faced two break points when trailing 1-4 in the second set as Ymer looked set to snap his opponent’s unbeaten run in style. Yet the Canadian dug deep to hold his serve before roaring back to complete a thrilling 6-7(6), 6-4, 7-6(6) triumph in three hours and 30 minutes at the ATP Masters 1000 event.

“Somehow I found a second wind after saving those break points at 4-1,” said Auger-Aliassime after the match. “I played better and better, coming through the court much better, serving better. It was pretty epic. Three hours and 30 minutes on the court, quality rallies. He was making me work all the time. Definitely a win to remember.”

Felix. Auger. Aliassime. 🤫@felixtennis rallies from 6-7 1-4 down to defeat Ymer in 3 hours 30 minutes!#RolexParisMasters pic.twitter.com/JAlsZVSpV9

— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) November 2, 2022

A few hours after his comeback win, Auger-Aliassime was given another reason to celebrate in Paris when his qualification for November’s Nitto ATP Finals was confirmed as a result of second-round defeats for Taylor Fritz and Hubert Hurkacz. The Canadian will make his debut at the prestigious season finale, to be held in Turin from 13-20 November.

In his match against Ymer, Auger-Aliassime kept himself alive by excelling at crucial moments — the Canadian converted four of five break points he had while saving 14 of 17 that he faced. His determination to stay on the front foot as often as possible also proved key. According to Tennis Data Innovation’s INSIGHTS In Attack analysis for the second-round clash, the Canadian hit 31 per cent of his shots from attacking positions compared to Ymer’s 16 per cent.

_{^{INSIGHTS In Attack for Felix Auger-Aliassime Vs. Mikael Ymer}}

Auger-Aliassime’s recent run has seen the 22-year-old win titles in Florence, Antwerp and Basel, and the eighth seed is now into the third round in Paris for the first time in three appearances as he chases his maiden Masters 1000 crown.

“[I’m pretty tired], but it’s not the time to complain and whine,” said Auger-Aliassime. “I decided to play these events, I won three of them, so I can’t complain. It’s fantastic.

“Here, I’m just trying to give my best. Let’s go and see day-by-day how I feel. Definitely today was a tough one, not only just the game but the way he was playing as well, he was making me work a lot. That added extra toughness to the match.”

Fritz and Hurkacz still had a chance of catching Auger-Aliassime and Andrey Rublev in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin if they could reach the championship match in Paris. Both players’ hopes were ended on a dramatic evening in Paris, where Fritz became the second consecutive player to fall in three sets to an inspired Gilles Simon.

_{^{Photo Credit: Corinne Dubreuil/ATP Tour}}

Simon, playing the final tournament of his professional career, backed up his thrilling first-round win against Andy Murray with a stirring 7-5, 5-7, 6-4 victory against Fritz. He converted four of 11 break points to extend his career by at least one more round in Paris, where he will meet Auger-Aliassime in the third round.

Hurkacz’s Turin qualification hopes were ended by Holger Rune, who prevailed 7-5, 6-1 in the pair’s first ATP Head2Head meeting to book a third-round clash against Rublev.

Rune, who next week will compete at the Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan, did not face a break point in his 64-minute win. The Stockholm champion has now won 15 of his past 17 matches in the European indoor hard-court season.

When Tommy Paul played Rafael Nadal earlier this year in Acapulco, it was the first time he had faced a member of the legendary ‘Big Three’. In what seemed like a flash, the American trailed 0-6.

“I was so nervous [in] the first set. I lost the first set 6-0 and I was like, ‘I don’t think I’m going to get a game’,” Paul, who eventually lost 0-6, 6-7(5), told ATPTour.com. “I ended up starting [to] play really, really good tennis. He’s fun to play against.”

Not many players describe facing Nadal, one of the toughest competitors in the history of sport, as “fun”. But the 25-year-old is no stranger to standing across the net from the Spaniard.

“I practised with him actually three days ago,” Paul said. “I practise with him quite a bit, so it should be a fun match.”

The pair will clash for the second time on Wednesday evening in the second round of the Rolex Paris Masters. It will be Nadal’s first singles match since the US Open. Although Paul trained with the 36-time ATP Masters 1000 titlist in the leadup to the tournament, he knows a match will be different.

“Practising with him is super different because he hits a lot harder in practice. He really hits through the court and then in matches the balls just jump a lot more. He hits slower, but heavier. It’s different,” Paul said. “Obviously he uses his lefty spin to his advantage as much as he can and everyone knows he’s Rafa, he’s not ever going to give up even if he looks like he’s out of the match, so that’s always tricky. It should be fun playing him.”

Nadal is not the first Grand Slam champion Paul has played in Paris. Two years ago, he lost a tough three-setter to Stan Wawrinka in the second round.

“If you don’t live for those moments, you probably shouldn’t even be playing tennis. That’s what all of us wanted to do when we were young: play on big courts against the best players,” Paul said. “I played Wawrinka here on Stadium, but it was during 2020 so we had zero people here, it was super weird. So I’m pumped to play in front of a full crowd.

“From what I saw with [Andy] Murray’s [match against Gilles Simon], it looked like they were pretty into it here, so it should be fun.”

This has been the best season of Paul’s career. In September, he climbed to a career-high No. 28 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings. The American has also claimed three of his five Top 10 wins. Paul will take confidence into his Nadal match after defeating another Spaniard, Roberto Bautista Agut, for the first time.

“This year it’s been a little more difficult [physically] because I played a full season for the first time,” Paul said. “The body’s tired, but I played really well today and obviously it’s not going to be hard to get excited to play tomorrow, so hopefully we can ride it out this week.”

In a memorable tournament debut, Holger Rune saved three match points — two in the second set and another in the third — in a comeback win against Stan Wawrinka to close Tuesday’s play at the Rolex Paris Masters. In a two-hour, 30-minute contest that finished after midnight on Court 1, the Dane battled back for a 4-6, 7-5, 7-6(3) victory to continue his blistering form on the ATP Tour.

A finalist in three of his past four events, including a title run in Stockholm, Rune has now won 14 of his past 16 matches. It’s a stretch that earned him his debut in the Top 20 of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, as he began this week as the World No. 18.

Rune lost the opening set against Wawrinka on a late break, and the Swiss again threatened a decisive closing blow at 5-4 in the second. But Rune saved two match points to start a run of three straight games and force a decider. There was just one break point on offer in the final set, and it doubled as a match point with Rune serving to stay alive at 5-6.

The 19-year-old stood firm to hold and won his final eight service points as he ran away with the tie-break. Through to the second round, he will face 10th seed Hubert Hurkacz on Wednesday. The Pole was a 7-6(5), 6-4 winner against French wild card Adrian Mannarino earlier on Tuesday.

Rune will conclude his breakout season next week at the Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan.

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With the defeat, Wawrinka’s 2022 ATP Tour season came to a heartbreaking close one week after a quarter-final run in Basel. The Swiss recorded an 8-14 tour-level record on the year but will be encouraged by his recent play after working his way back from left-foot surgery in 2021.

Simone Bolelli and Fabio Fognini kept alive their bid to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals with an opening-round win on Tuesday at the Rolex Paris Masters. The Italians earned a 7-6(5), 6-3 result against Santiago Gonzalez and Lukasz Kubot as they seek to improve upon their 10th-place position in the Pepperstone ATP Live Doubles Teams Rankings.

Bolelli/Fognini will need to finish in the Top 7 to guarantee their place in Turin.

In the Paris opening round, the Italians twice battled back from a break down in the opening set before winning the tie-break from 2/4. A single break decided the second set, with the breakthrough coming in the sixth game before a pair of love holds from Bolelli/Fognini finished the match.

After winning the lone doubles match on Tuesday at the ATP Masters 1000 event, the pair will face Rohan Bopanna and Matwe Middelkoop in the second round.

As Felix Auger-Aliassime closes on a maiden berth at the Nitto ATP Finals, the qualifying scenario for the Canadian in Paris this week is simple: Keep winning.

The 22-year-old has been doing a lot of that lately, amassing a 13-match win streaking that he will take into his second-round clash with Swedish qualifier Mikael Ymer on Wednesday. Leading Andrey Rublev, Taylor Fritz and Hubert Hurkacz in the battle to claim the last two spots in Turin, Felix is already highly likely to qualify, but he can make a certainty of it by going deeper in the draw than at least two of his rivals.

Four of the Top-5 seeds are also in action Wednesday, including World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz and 22-time major champion Rafael Nadal.

Felix, who boasts a 53-24 match record in 2022, has won four titles this season (Rotterdam, Florence, Antwerp, Basel), all of which have come on indoor hard courts. The Montreal native collected a trio of titles before arriving at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Paris and now the eighth seed looks to continue his hot streak.

“For sure I didn’t expect this run [three straight titles],” Felix said. “Day-by-day, things clicked and I was playing better and better. Hopefully this run keeps going.

“I do enjoy these courts, playing indoors. I enjoy Paris. There’s no reason why I shouldn’t be able to play well here.”

The Canadian, who is sixth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin, aims to strengthen his chances to make his debut at the prestigious Nitto ATP Finals, held from 13-20 November.

Fritz, who is eighth in the Race, hopes to keep alive his chances of qualifying for the Nitto ATP Finals for the first time. The American will take on home favourite Gilles Simon, who rallied from a set down to defeat Andy Murray. The Frenchman, who reached a career-high No. 6 in January 2009 and claimed 14 Tour-level titles, is set to bid farewell to his career this week.

Alcaraz, who holds a season-leading five Tour-level titles, begins his quest for his third ATP Masters 1000 crown (Miami & Madrid 2022). The 19-year-old looks to continue his standout season as he takes on Japan’s Yoshihito Nishioka in a second-round clash.

“Since the end of the US Open, my goal has been to try and end the year as World No. 1,” Alcaraz said. “I have two big tournaments ahead, Paris and Turin. I’m going to try and show my best level.”

Nadal, who is competing in his first tournament since becoming a father, is seeking his first Rolex Paris Masters title. Should the 36-year-old be crowned champion, he will make up ground on countryman Alcaraz in the battle for year-end No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings. The Spaniard will kick off the Wednesday evening session against American Tommy Paul.

“I am excited to be here,” Nadal said. “I am here to try my best. Hopefully I will be ready for tomorrow [Wednesday], and I’m going to try to be competitive. Let’s see. I am excited about it.”

Other intriguing second-round matches Wednesday include Stefanos Tsitsipas taking on Daniel Evans, while 2020 Paris champion Daniil Medvedev meets Australian Alex de Minaur. 12th seed Cameron Norrie will close out the evening session on Court Central against French qualifier Corentin Moutet.

Playing for the first time since winning back-to-back indoor titles in early October, Novak Djokovic extended his win streak to 10 with a clinical victory against Maxime Cressy on Tuesday at the Rolex Paris Masters.

In a 7-6(1), 6-4 win against the Paris-born American, Djokovic was imperious on serve, which freed him up in his attempts to unlock Cressy’s booming delivery. The Serbian finally made his breakthrough on return to lead 5-4 in the second set as he converted on his fifth break point before serving out the match with ease.

“It was very intense, just a lot of pressure,” he said post-match. “When you play someone that serves this well — first and second serve — you don’t have much room to relax and maybe play kind of a softer few games. You just have to be on your toes all the time. Credit to him for serving big in some big moments. I had my chances [in the] first set to break him, second as well.

“A break came at the right time, perfect time actually. I was very pleased with the way I held my serve, didn’t face a break point,” he added, noting the fast conditions that made it even harder to return.

Cressy hung tough in the opening set, saving three break points with his all-out attack, but two double faults in the tie-break were more than enough for Djokovic to seal the set. The American hit 15 aces and 10 double faults overall as he remained committed to his aggressive game plan. While the strategy was effective on his own serve, he could not make inroads on Djokovic’s delivery, with the Serb losing just six points on serve and not facing a break point.

“I had to lock in, I had to not give him gifts and points,” Djokovic said. “What I could do and what I wanted to do is to really do what I do best, which is just be solid from the back of the court and wait for the opportunities when they are presented, try to capitalise on them… Just overall very pleased with the way I felt and the way I played.”

Despite many short points, the sixth seed was still able to flash his athleticism throughout the one-hour, 43-minute match — particularly on a backhand passing shot that helped him to the decisive break in set two, after which he basked in the adoration of the Paris crowd

The Serbian’s stellar returning was on full display against one of the ATP Tour’s biggest servers, his brilliance in that particular department illustrated by his INSIGHTS: Shot Quality score, which is measured on a 10-point scale.

Djokovic was full of praise for his opponent’s unique game following the match, and he described how Cressy’s serve-and-volley style affected his approach on return.

“It does change a lot because not only do you have to get the return back, but you hav to put it under his feet, which is very difficult to do,” he explained. “It’s nice to see someone that comes in after fist and second serve,” he said. “It just gives a different look from the tennis fans’ point of view. I appreciate that, I respect that. It takes courage to play with this modern tennis nowadays this kind of style that is almost an ancient style. You don’t have many players that do that. Possibly he’s the only one at the top.”

Djokovic has now won 24 straight matches against Americans and also owns a 10-match win streak in Paris dating back to his title runs in 2019 and 2021 (he did not play in 2020). He is seeking his fifth title of the season after triumphs at Rome, Wimbledon, Tel Aviv and Astana, the latter two coming in consecutive weeks spanning from September to October.

Those results have helped the Serbian to qualify for the 2022 Nitto ATP Finals later this month. He is one of six players already confirmed for Turin, joining Carlos Alcaraz, Rafael Nadal, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Casper Ruud and Daniil Medvedev.

Did You Know?
Djokovic is the only player to win all nine ATP Masters 1000 events, completing the Career Golden Masters twice on his way to a record 38 titles at the prestigious level.