Tennis News

Tsitsipas ends coaching partnership with father

Stefanos Tsitsipas announced on Friday that his father Apostolos would no longer serve as his coach.

“It is with a heavy heart that I inform you that my collaboration with my father as a coach has come to an end. I prefer to keep my father in his role as a father, and only as a father,” Tsitsipas wrote in Greek on social media.

“Philosophy teaches us that wisdom comes through understanding our limits and acknowledging our mistakes,” he continued. “In my case, I realised that I was wrong to talk to my father the way I did. Tennis is not just a match, a hit or a performance of a few seconds. It is a long journey full of emotions, pressure and expectations.

“In that moment of frustration, there were many mistakes and errors on the part of my coach and father. As an introvert, I tend to hold in my emotions and build them up until I reach a bursting point. I consider myself patient, so the fact that I reacted this way left me shocked.”

Σας ενημερώνω με βαριά καρδιά ότι η συνεργασία μου με τον πατέρα μου ως προπονητής έχει φτάσει στο τέλος της. Προτιμώ να κρατήσω τον πατέρα μου στον ρόλο του ως πατέρας, και μόνο ως πατέρας.

Η φιλοσοφία μας διδάσκει ότι η σοφία έρχεται μέσα από την κατανόηση των ορίων μας και…

— Stefanos Tsitsipas (@steftsitsipas) August 9, 2024

Tsitsipas fell in the second round in Montreal on Thursday to Kei Nishikori and spoke frankly about his father’s role following the match. Tsitsipas parted ways with his father in 2023 after he hired former World No. 8 Mark Philippoussis. Tsitsipas then split with the Australian two months later and resumed his partnership with his dad.

The 25-year-old won 11 tour-level titles under his father’s guidance, including the Nitto ATP Finals in 2019. The No. 11 in the PIF ATP Rankings is 35-15 on the year, highlighted by his title at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Monte-Carlo.

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A lot of changes that could be paying big dividends for Alejandro Davidovich Fokina

Alejandro Davidovich Fokina earned his biggest win of the season Thursday at the Omnium Banque National présenté par Rogers, where he upset third seed Daniil Medvedev.

“It’s not been an easy year for me,” the Spaniard said in his on-court interview. “A lot of changes in my life.”

One of those changes was to his team. Davidovich Fokina had worked with coach Jorge Aguirre from age 11, but at Roland Garros former No. 7 in the PIF ATP Rankings Fernando Verdasco became his coach.

“It’s a lot of years that I was with him and at the end, I think I was struggling about not going forward from the ranking [where] I was,” Davidovich Fokina, who reached a career-high World No. 21 last year, told ATPTour.com. “I think we had our limits. I decided to change [to] Fer because I think I have to have a top player that can tell me things that maybe my coach could not say. Because at the end, the feelings and the emotions and everything that Fernando has on court all his career, he will know how to manage those times.

“We started in Roland Garros, and we didn’t have a lot of time together. But we are working every day, and we are enjoying each other, because we know [each other] very well, and I know his family, and he knows me. He knows my people around me, then we are enjoying it.”

ADF THE SHOWSTOPPER 🕺@alexdavidovich1 defeats Medvedev for the first time! @OBNmontreal | #OBN24 pic.twitter.com/ltpOpS2gtz

— ATP Tour (@atptour) August 8, 2024

When Davidovich Fokina was growing up, Verdasco was one of the best players in the world. The younger Spaniard fondly recalls his coach’s memorable 2009 Australian Open semi-final against Rafael Nadal, which Nadal won in five gripping sets.

“The tie-break that he played that he was up 6/0 in the tie-break and how he played that tie-break, all the match was amazing,” Davidovich Fokina said. “But we always talk about that and the game with [Andy] Murray too, there are a lot of matches that we can talk about, and we’re still talking about it.”

The pair first met at the 2019 cinch Championships held at Queen’s Club in London. Davidovich Fokina was competing at the tournament for the first time and Verdasco was also in action.

“I felt that he cared about me when we met each other,” Davidovich Fokina said. “Through all the years, he was talking to me, he was helping me. He was texting me always. I was thinking, ‘Oh, he helps me sometimes’, and when… I saw that he’s more coaching, I said, ‘Okay, I think this is my time to do a change, and I think this is the right time’.”

Verdasco explained that they have always had a great relationship since they first met. When Davidovich Fokina called to ask for help, the lefty said he would do whatever he could.

“We ended up trying in Roland Garros, Queen’s and Wimbledon. Even though he couldn’t play Wimbledon, we were happy spending time together,” Verdasco said. “We’ve had a good relationship since the beginning, so it didn’t change at all. I think that’s the most important thing, that we had a good relationship before. At the end, the connection is very important to work good and to actually understand each other in an easier way.”

That was not the only change in 2024 for Davidovich Fokina. The Spaniard moved to Monte-Carlo and also got engaged.

“Well, at the end, it’s not easy, changes in your life,” Davidovich Fokina said. “I think the changes have to have a little bit of time to process everything, to settle down and to make sure what you want. And at the end, I’m very, very happy with the team I have right now with Fer. I think he’s helping me a lot and at the end, to have one guy next to you that he was one of the best guys on Tour, for me, it’s a huge help.”

The 25-year-old had a big smile on his face when he discussed his January engagement to his fiancé, Paloma. He said he was more nervous for that moment than closing out Medvedev in Montreal, and it was not particularly close.

“It’s very special. At the end, you always dream about that, to have a family, and we moved to Monte-Carlo too. Then we left Spain,” Davidovich Fokina said. “Everything is new in my life now. It’s not always easy [figuring out] how to adapt to it, because at the end all my life, I’ve been in Spain. I’ve been in my comfort zone, and going outside of my comfort zone is not easy. But I think I’m adapting very good. At the end, things are not going to come very quick. We have to wait and fight for it.”

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Hurkacz vs. Kokkinakis Montreal match delayed due to rain

Fourth seed Hubert Hurkacz and Thanasi Kokkinakis will have to wait to begin their second-round match at the Omnium Banque National présenté par Rogers, where Thursday rain has delayed the evening session. Play will not resume before 10 p.m. local time.

The 27-year-old Pole and Kokkinakis warmed up for their fourth Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting, but rain fell just as they were about to begin the match. Players briefly waited courtside before heading to the locker room.

Hurkacz, who is set to compete for the first time since knee surgery post-Wimbledon, gave a ballkid an unforgettable memory when he invited him to share an umbrella. The World No. 6 in the PIF ATP Rankings asked the ballkid questions such as, ‘Do you play tennis? Play any tournaments?’

The all-American match between ninth seed Taylor Fritz and Washington champion Sebastian Korda has been moved to Court 5. On Court Rogers, Arthur Rinderknech led Flavio Cobolli 3-0, 15/15 with the Italian serving when play was suspended.

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Nys & Zielinski down Montreal second seeds, next face Draper & Sinner

Hugo Nys and Jan Zielinski reached the quarter-finals of the Omnium Banque National présenté par Rogers on Thursday, when they downed second seeds Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden 4-6, 6-3, 10-7.

Seeded 14th, the Monegasque-Polish team held its nerves in the closing stages, converting their fourth match point to set a quarter-final clash against singles stars Jack Draper and Jannik Sinner.

Daniil Medvedev and Roman Safiullin also rallied from a set down, overcoming sixth seeds Santiago Gonzalez and Edouard Roger-Vasselin 3-6, 6-1, 10-7. Into the last eight, Medvedev and Safiullin will meet third seeds Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury. The 2021 champions defeated 15th seeds Lloyd Glasspool and Nikola Mektic 6-4, 7-6(4).

Fourth seeds Marcelo Arevalo and Mate Pavic, who won Roland Garros this year, advanced with a 7-6(4), 6-3 victory against ninth seeds Neal Skupski and Michael Venus.

Fifth-seeded Italians Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori ousted 12th seeds Max Purcell and Jordan Thompson 6-3, 7-6(4). Bolelli and Vavassori are third in the PIF ATP Live Doubles Race To Turin.

<img src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/08/09/00/27/bolelli-vavassori-montreal-2024-thursday.jpg” style=”width:100%;” alt=”Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori.” />
^{Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori in Montreal action Thursday. Credit: Peter Staples/ATP Tour}

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Boulter through as Haddad Maia retires after two games

Katie Boulter reaches the third round of the Canadian Open as Beatriz Haddad Maia retires after two games with a back problem.

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Sinner surges in Montreal opener

Top seed Jannik Sinner began his title defence in dominant fashion Thursday at the Omnium Banque National présenté par Rogers. Competing in his first singles match 30 days on from his Wimbledon quarter-final run, the Italian raced past Croatian Borna Coric 6-2, 6-4 in Montreal.

Sinner produced high-quality ballstriking and showed no signs of rust once he found his rhythm in the early stages. The 22-year-old, who missed the Paris Olympics due to tonsillitis, dropped just four points behind his first serve in what was his first hard-court match since winning the Miami title in March.

“I’ve been here for a little bit so I’m maybe a bit more used to the conditions, but still, I’m very happy about the performance,” Sinner said. “It was a very tough match. Even if you watched the score, it felt closer for sure. I had to save a break point in the second set and if he makes that one it could potentially change the match. It was a very good mindset today and I’ll try to keep going.”

The 14-time tour-level titlist honed in on deep returning to pressure Coric early in rallies. Sinner created 11 break chances, converting three of them, according to Infosys ATP Stats.

“Today I felt like I was hitting the ball quite cleanly,” said Sinner, who is in the doubles quarter-finals alongside Jack Draper. “It’s very tough to play here, it’s a bit breezy and windy and the ball flies a bit, so we try to get better day by day. Today was for sure a very positive day, so let’s see what’s coming.”

Sinner’s title run last year at the Canadian ATP Masters 1000 event marked his first trophy at that level. Turning 23 next week, Sinner has since soared to No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings. He boasts a 43-4 season record and leads the ATP Tour in hard-court wins (23) this year.

Aiming for his fifth title of the season, Sinner meets 15th seed Alejandro Tabilo in the Round of 16. The Canadian-born Chilean ousted Lorenzo Sonego 6-4, 6-2. It will mark Sinner’s first Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting with Tabilo, who in Rome upset Novak Djokovic for his first win against a World No. 1.

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Djokovic withdraws from Cincinnati

Novak Djokovic has withdrawn from the Cincinnati Open, the tournament announced on Thursday.

The Serbian owns a 45-12 record at the ATP Masters 1000 hard-court event, triumphing in 2018, 2020 and 2023. Twelve months ago, Djokovic defeated Carlos Alcaraz in an epic deciding-set tie-break in the title match.

The 37-year-old holds a 29-7 record on the season, having captured his first Olympic gold medal in the men’s singles at the Paris Olympics last week, when he defeated Alcaraz in two tie-breaks less than two months after undergoing surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee to take a 4-3 lead in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series.

Djokovic is currently sixth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin. The seven-time Nitto ATP Finals champion is trying to qualify for the season finale for the 17th time. Since 2007, the only year in which he missed out was 2017. The 2024 year-end championships will be held in Turin from 10-17 November.

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Fonseca's talent so obvious at 2, even the yoga instructor noticed

Of all people, a Brazilian yoga teacher can proudly claim that he was one of the first to recognise Joao Fonseca’s natural athletic ability.

The room inside the Fonseca’s house which is now an office was once an exercise space, where the #NextGenATP star’s father, Christiano, practised jiu-jitsu and had in-home yoga lessons. Meanwhile, a two-year-old Joao would be playing with a ball, as any toddler enjoys. But this was different. The coordination came easy. The reaction time was impressively quick. It was in that same exercise room where Joao and his father began playing mini-tennis matches.

“We made a little net in the middle and I played with my father a lot,” Fonseca told ATPTour.com. “My dad would play a match to 10 and it would be 9/3 and he would make it 9/9, and then sometimes he made me win and other times he would make it 11/9, a win for him. And I cried, I remember.”

Now 17 and one of the fastest-rising names in tennis, Fonseca, who last week won his first ATP Challenger Tour title, grew up a multi-sport athlete, playing soccer and tennis while also participating in jiu-jitsu and judo. It did not take long for the Fonsecas to realise that their son had potential.

“When he was two, we were like, ‘This boy is different,’” Christiano said. “I remember that my yoga teacher came here and he started playing with the ball with Joao and he said to me, ‘This boy is different. He has much more reflexes and coordination than the average.’ Very young, we knew he was different.”

<img src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/08/08/19/33/fonseca-rio-child.jpg” style=”width:100%;” alt=”Joao Fonseca in Rio.” />
^{Joao Fonseca (far left) attends the ATP 500 event in Rio de Janeiro as a child. Credit: Fonseca family}

From ages eight to 11, Fonseca practised for one hour a day, but that did not fully satisfy his tennis hunger. After practice, he went directly to hit against a wall or to ask his parents to join him for more play.

“In the first tournament that we took him to, he was maybe nine,” Roberta recalled. “All the tournaments were during the weekends so we said, ‘Choose one tournament to go to, because we can’t go all the weekends.’ He chose one tournament and he lost — I don’t remember — the second match.

“He came out to the car and said, ‘Oh please, I’d like to go to another one! Next week!’ He just lost his match and he asked us for the next tournament, because he wants to play again. He loves to compete. I think that’s his motivation.”

Some of the family’s fondest memories came at their mountain vacation home, where they have a tennis court, from which Joao could not be pulled away.

“I remember all the time he was asking somebody to go to the court with him, ‘Please, let’s go to the court! Let’s go to the court!’” Christiano said. “He didn’t carry the racquet. He was just dragging the racquet because it was big for him. It was funny.”

Fonseca formed an immediate bond with coach Guilherme Teixeira at age 12. The teen not only looks to Teixeira for tennis guidance, but also considers him a second father and best friend.

Sixth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Jeddah, Fonseca accelerated to new heights last year when he and Teixeira made a tournament agreement — during the US Open boys’ singles event — that has since stuck.

“I stay only with WhatsApp. Only familiar people, good friends I try to answer on WhatsApp. Instagram, I can’t have my Instagram before a match and after a match,” Fonseca said of his distraction-less approach. “So when I start a tournament, I barely see my Instagram. More of my WhatsApp, I need to talk with [my team] sometimes, my family.”

By spending less time on social media, Fonseca saw direct and immediate correlation in his on-court results. The teen went on to capture the junior crown at the US Open. Starting this year at World No. 730 in the PIF ATP Rankings, Fonseca has skyrocketed more than 500 places, hitting a career-high No. 166 on Monday after winning the ATP Challenger Tour 75 event in Lexington, Kentucky.

<img src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/08/08/16/02/fonseca-us-open-2023-emotion.jpg” style=”width:100%;” alt=”An emotional Joao Fonseca celebrates winning the 2023 US Open boys’ singles title.” />
^{An emotional Joao Fonseca celebrates winning the 2023 US Open boys’ singles title. Credit: Sarah Stier/Getty Images}

Fonseca did not drop a set across five matches to become the youngest Brazilian champion in Challenger history (since 1978). And on the five-year anniversary of Jannik Sinner’s triumph at that same event, the Lexington Challenger crowned Fonseca. The Rio de Janeiro native lifted the title just one day younger (17 years, 11 months, 17 days) than the Italian.

Sinner won in Lexington and three months later he emerged victorious at the Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF, the 20-and-under event which Fonseca is aiming to play at for the first time.

“In the ceremony, they gave me the trophy and announced, ‘Lexington is the first Challenger to have three 17-year-old champions. He said Shang Juncheng, Jannik Sinner,” Fonseca said.
“That’s really nice.”

Twenty minutes after making history Sunday, Fonseca kindly took the time to hit with three ballkids at the University of Kentucky’s indoor courts. When Fonseca’s self-imposed phone ban was lifted after collecting the trophy, he read a plethora of congratulatory messages, some from Brazilian surfer Pedro Scooby, Flamengo centre-back Leo Ortiz and former doubles World No. 2 Bruno Soares, among others.

Fans on social media are quick to refer to Fonseca with nicknames such as, ‘Little Sinner’ or ‘Another Guga’, in reference to Gustavo Kuerten, Brazil’s lone player to reach World No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings. Through all the praise and promise, Fonseca is focussed on, “just trying to be Joao”.

<img src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/08/08/15/52/fonseca-kuerten-lexington-challenger-2024-feature.jpg” style=”width:100%;” alt=”Joao Fonseca (far right) and a friend meet Gustavo Kuerten.” />
^{Joao Fonseca (far right) and a friend meet Gustavo Kuerten. Credit: Fonseca family}

Fonseca, the youngest player in the Top 200, is proud of his mental resilience in Lexington. He arrived at the tournament having lost four of his past five matches across all levels. The two-time tour-level quarter-finalist avenged his most recent loss to Gabriel Diallo in the last eight and due to rain earlier in the week, Fonseca returned to court later that day for a semi-final victory.

Celebrating his 18th birthday on 21 August, Fonseca kept his cool when serving out the final, firing his signature inside-in forehand at 15/0. He fell on his back in relief when he clinched the championship, placing his hands over his eyes. Fonseca became the second-youngest player from South America to win a hard-court Challenger, only behind former World No. 3 Juan Martin del Potro.

“The way that I managed to win this tournament, those matches with mental strength and physical strength. I’m really happy to find a way to win those difficult matches against really good players,” Fonseca said.

“Five years from now I’m probably going to say that I’m going to be grateful for me trying to make this mental change so early, at 17. I wanna go to the pro tour and play the big tournaments, but I will be grateful for this week.”

Lexington is where the future shines 💫

2019 👉 Jannik Sinner
2024 👉 Joao Fonseca#OnTheRise | @atptour pic.twitter.com/WmB84yK0Pi

— ATP Challenger Tour (@ATPChallenger) August 4, 2024

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Zverev races to third round in Montreal, Rublev advances

Alexander Zverev wasted little time in earning a Tour-leading 48th win of the season on Thursday at the Omnium Banque National présenté par Rogers in Montreal, where he cruised past Australian Jordan Thompson 6-1, 6-1 to reach the third round.

The No. 4 player in the PIF ATP Rankings was competing on hard courts for the first time since his semi-final run in March in Maimi but adjusted quickly to advance after 63 minutes.

Zverev dominated on serve, winning 95 per cent (18/19) of points behind his first delivery, according to Infosys ATP Stats, while he tallied a 20-8 winners-to-unforced errors ratio to avenge his semi-final defeat to Thompson in Los Cabos earlier this year and level their Lexus ATP Head2Head series at 2-2.

The second-seeded German has fond memories in Montreal, having defeated Roger Federer in straight sets to win the title in 2017 when he was aged 20.

Zverev will continue his quest this week at the ATP Masters 1000 hard-court event against 13th seed Holger Rune, who ousted Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta 6-1, 6-3.

The 27-year-old Zverev, a titlist in Rome earlier this year, is third in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin. A deep run in Canada will further boost his chances of qualifying for the Nitto ATP Finals, an event he has won twice (2018, 2021).

Seeds Casper Ruud, Andrey Rublev and Grigor Dimitrov also advanced. Ruud defeated Australian James Duckworth 6-2, 6-7(5), 6-3 while Rublev beat Tomas Martin Etcheverry 7-6(3), 6-2. Dimitrov downed Rinky Hijikata 6-1, 6-0.

Rublev won his second Masters 1000 title in Madrid earlier this year and has now equalled his best result at the Canadian Masters 1000 event by reaching the third round. He will next play Brandon Nakashima.

Australian Alexei Popyrin upset 11th seed Ben Shelton 6-4, 7-6(4) to level their Lexus ATP Head2Head series at 1-1. Shelton last year spoiled Popyrin’s hopes at his home Slam in Melbourne, where the lefty earned a third-round victory in straight sets.

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Nishikori stuns Tsitsipas, Foki floors Medvedev

Kei Nishikori earned his first Top 20 win since 2021 on Thursday at the Omnium Banque National présenté par Rogers in Montreal, where he upset World No. 11 Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4, 6-4 to reach the third round at ATP Masters 1000 level for the first time in three years.

The Japanese lefty, currently No. 576 in the PIF ATP Rankings, rolled back the years with an impressive display against Tsitsipas to become the third lowest-ranked player to reach the last 16 at an ATP Masters 1000 event since the series began in 1990.

“It means a lot,” Nishikori said after reaching the third round. “I am playing well and feels I am back on track again, so I am really happy with the way I played today.”

Nishikori won 92 per cent (11/12) of net points and 60 per cent (9/15) of points on Tsitsipas’ second-serve, according to Infosys ATP Stats, to advance after just 79 minutes at the hard-court event.

“Beating Stef is not easy and for me it is a great win,” Nishikori added. “I stayed aggressive and was not missing too many balls today. It was much better than the first round.”

The 2016 finalist, making his ninth appearance at the Canadian Masters 1000 tournament, will next face 12th-seeded Frenchman Ugo Humbert or Portugal’s Nuno Borges.

Nishikori is a 12-time tour-level titlist and rose to a career-high No. 4 in the PIF ATP Rankings in 2015. The 34-year-old has been plagued by injuries in recent years and prior to Tuesday’s win against Alex Michelsen, had not earned a victory at ATP Masters 1000 level since Indian Wells in 2021.

Alejandro Davidovich Fokina also scored a major upset when he overcame World No. 5 Daniil Medvedev for just his third Top 5 win.

The Spaniard fired 24 winners en route to a 6-4, 1-6, 6-2 triumph against 2021 champion Medvedev. With his one-hour, 56-minute win, Davidovich Fokina improved to 1-4 in the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series.

The 25-year-old, who reached the semi-finals at the Canadian ATP Masters 1000 event last year in Toronto, will next play Karen Khachanov or Matteo Arnaldi.

Medvedev was competing in his first hard-court match since he reached the semi-finals in Miami in March. The 2020 Nitto ATP Finals champ, who is fourth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin, is still seeking his first title since May 2023 when he won in Rome.

In a lunchtime of upsets, American qualifier Brandon Nakashima defeated countryman Tommy Paul 6-2, 6-7(5), 6-1 to reach the third round at a Masters 1000 event for the second time.

The 2022 Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF champion saved both break points he faced, hit 26 winners and just 11 unforced errors to seal his win after two hours and 14 minutes.

Nakashima holds a 3-0 Lexus ATP Head2Head record against Paul, having also earned wins against the 10th seed in 2022 and 2023. Nakashima will next play fifth seed Andrey Rublev or Argentine Tomas Martin Etcheverry.

Paul’s early exit means he missed the chance to climb in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin. The American is 10th in the Live Race To Turin and 150 points behind eighth-placed Tsitsipas, who occupies the final qualification spot. Paul is 34-13 on the season and has clinched crowns in Dallas and Queen’s Club.

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