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Coco 'Starstruck'; Swiatek Shares Court With Nadal

  • Posted: May 29, 2021

When Rafael Nadal gives you praise, it would be hard not to smile. Even the mention of his name can bring about a grin. This was the case for WTA stars Coco Gauff and Iga Swiatek on Friday who were overwhelmed when the Spanish superstar was mentioned.

The 17-year-old Gauff has had a remarkable rise since winning the 2018 Roland Garros junior title. This has has understandably led to recognition from those within the sport, with 13-time champion Nadal the latest to compliment the American, deeming her “great with aptitude”. This news brought a beaming smile to the teenager’s face who is in awe of the Spaniard.

“Oh, that’s pretty cool to hear, to be honest,” said Gauff. “It feels pretty good. Obviously, [he is] somebody [that] I look up to, and walking around I still get starstruck by him, like it’s Rafa Nadal. So, it’s pretty cool that he said that about me.”

Nadal’s success and reputation is so great that leading stars in their own right still struggle to muster up the nerve to even say “Hello” when they cross paths with the 34-year-old. This has been the experience for Swiatek, the 2020 Roland Garros champion and World No. 9, who grinned and admitted she had not yet had the confidence to approach Nadal and discuss the sport.

“Maybe we’re going to have a chance to do that later, but we just had like a quick small talk last year, and yesterday he said ‘Hi’ to me,” Swiatek smirked. “For now, I’m too overwhelmed to even say ‘Hi’. I’m a big fan of his, and if I’m going to have a chance to ask him some stuff and also learn from him, it would be great, but we are both busy, so I know it’s going to be hard to schedule that.”

But as luck would have it, Swiatek and Nadal met on the practice court Saturday, exchanging a fist bump and even hitting some balls.

 

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During Roland Garros, Nadal and Swiatek will celebrate their birthdays, while in Rome, they saved match points on their way to the title. They also both won their first Grand Slam trophy aged 19. When asked about these connections with her idol, Swiatek confessed that she has thought about these parallels, but it unsure of what to make of them.

“I thought about it, but I also think it’s kind of weird,” Swiatek said. “I don’t know what to say, because it’s also some kind of superstition when you look at that stuff and try to compare each other. But, yeah, I know it’s weird.”

Meanwhile for Gauff, Nadal is insistent that she does not need advice from him. The American, who will be looking to reach the third round in Paris for the first time in her career, is not so sure though.

Gauff said: “I know [that] he says I don’t need advice, but anything from Rafa would be great (smiling).”

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Bolelli/Gonzalez Clinch Parma Doubles Title

  • Posted: May 29, 2021

Simone Bolelli and Maximo Gonzalez clinched their second ATP Tour team title on Saturday with victory in the Emilia-Romagna Open final.

The Italian-Argentine team broke serve three times to beat Austria’s Oliver Marach and Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi of Pakistan 6-3, 6-3 in 81 minutes. They did not drop a set in their four matches this week at the President Tennis Club in Parma (8-0).

“I am very happy as this is our second title this year,” Bolelli told ATPTour.com. “I was born in Bologna, so this is my area and I know a lot of people here. Every time I play here, I feel like at home, so this is a special victory for me and it’s great people that were able to watch the match. Every match we’ve played better and better.”

Gonzalez told ATPTour.com, “We had a great week last week in Geneva, this week and we hope to continue this form and celebrate [with the title] in two weeks’ in Paris.”

Bolelli and Gonzalez are now 2-1 in tour-level finals this year, which includes the Chile Dove Men+Care Open title (d. Delbonis/Munar). They also reached last week’s Gonet Geneva Open final (l. to Peers/Venus) and are 15-5 on the season.

Individually, Bolelli, 35, is 7-10 in tour-level finals, while 37-year-old Gonzalez is 10-4 lifetime in title matches.

Marach and Qureshi were winners of the 2011 Bangkok title and runners up at 2015 Gstaad.

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#NextGenATP Korda To Face Cecchinato For Parma Title

  • Posted: May 28, 2021

#NextGenATP American Sebastian Korda booked a spot into his second ATP Tour final with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over countryman Tommy Paul on Friday at the Emilia-Romagna Open. 

Korda, who leads the Americans on the ATP Tour with 15 wins this season, will face Italian wild card Marco Cecchinato in his career first clay-court final. He will be aiming to become the first American since Sam Querrey in 2010 Belgrade (d. Isner) to lift a trophy on European clay. 

“It’s going to be tough [playing an Italian in Italy], but it’s probably going to be super fun,” said the 20-year-old in an on-court interview. “[It will be] another new experience. My first ATP clay-court final. I’m super excited, and whatever happens tomorrow I will give it my all. Hopefully we can play a good match.”

Korda has not dropped a set all week in Parma, and came out firing against his countryman and Davis Cup teammate. His deep returning kept Paul under pressure, and Korda created five break opportunities in the sixth seed’s first three service games. He finally broke through on his sixth opportunity at 4-3 to close out the opening set. 

The #NextGenATP American faced nine break points during the match, and saved eight. Paul broke to level the score in the second set at 1-1, but his opponent didn’t give him any other chances. Korda reeled off the last four games in a row from 2-3 to reestablish his lead, and seal his spot in the final.

It will be Korda’s first meeting with wild card Cecchinato, who needed two hours and 40 minutes to overcome a stern test against Marbella finalist Jaume Munar. Cecchinato saved five of the nine break points he faced to take down the Spaniard 7-6(2), 1-6, 6-1.

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“It was a tough match. [There were] so many rallies. Every point [was] tough, every point [had] tension,” Cecchinato said. “After the first set I was down in the second set 6-1, but I was really happy because I started well in the third set.

“The result is not ‘true’ because [the third set score] shows 6-1 but every point [was] tough. I’m very happy for this match.”

Cecchinato is into his first final of the year, and the fifth of his career (3-1) in Parma. He will be aiming to become the fourth different Italian champion on the ATP Tour this season, joining Matteo Berrettini (Belgrade 1), Jannik Sinner (Melbourne 1) and Lorenzo Sonego (Cagliari). 

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Brooksby Saves 3 MPs To Qualify At Roland Garros: 'I Always Fight Until The Last Point'

  • Posted: May 28, 2021

#NextGenATP American Jenson Brooksby was on the verge of defeat Friday evening at Roland Garros. Frenchman Evan Furness led their final-round qualifying match 7-6(5), 5-4 and had three match points on his serve at 40/0 to earn a spot in the main draw. But Brooksby staged a furious comeback to triumph 6-7(5), 7-6(2), 6-4 after three hours and 22 minutes and make the main draw in Paris for the first time.

“I was upset in the moment for sure, but I always fight until the last point,” Brooksby said. “Obviously that was a tough situation to be in, you don’t want to be there in general, but I kept fighting. I just tried to play my game even in those points and see what would happen and it paid off, thankfully.”

Brooksby has won three ATP Challenger Tour titles this season, and his 90.4 winning percentage through the year’s first four months is second-highest in Challenger history. All that success helped the 20-year-old against Furness.

“Definitely having won a lot of matches lately helped me get through today and believe I could come back from any deficit or whatever was going on out there,” Brooksby said. “[That] definitely played a big part in my belief today.”

When Brooksby lifted his third Challenger trophy of the season last month in Tallahassee, he did so on green clay. Before that tournament, he had not played on that surface in about two years. Roland Garros was an even bigger challenge — Brooksby had never competed on red clay.

“I think it’s just a testament to our mindset that we have,” Brooksby said. “We don’t worry about surface and things like that. I just focus on what’s in my control, which is how I’m playing [and] the intentions I have going out on the court. It’s definitely paid off. I believe that I can have a good week and I have so far.”

When Brooksby spoke to the media, he did not know that he will face 2021 breakthrough star Aslan Karatsev in the first round. But the American did not seem put off by the news.

“He’s had a very strong year for sure so far,” Brookbsy said. “I’ll be pumped and ready to go going into that one. It’s a good opportunity in the main draw. I’ll rest up today and then just prepare for the next match.”

The last time Brooksby advanced through Grand Slam qualifying, at the 2019 US Open, he beat Tomas Berdych in the main draw. The American knows that while getting this far is exciting, he has to refocus on the first round.

“[There is] no time to celebrate. [I’m] still in the tournament, there’s another match coming up,” Brooksby said. “I didn’t play my best today, and I’m just happy to have another opportunity. We’re going to go over, look at what I can improve for the next one and hopefully play better next time.”

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Federer 'Realistic', But A Dangerous Foe At Roland Garros

  • Posted: May 28, 2021

After Roger Federer lost his opening match at the Gonet Geneva Open last week against Pablo Andujar, the Swiss admitted it is likely he will not win Roland Garros.

“I’m just realistic that I know I will not win the French and whoever thought I would or could win it is wrong,” Federer said. “Of course crazier things might have happened, but I’m not so sure in the past 50 years at the French Open somebody just rocked up at 40 years old being out for a year and a half and [went] on to just win.”

However, the Swiss has enjoyed plenty of success on the Parisian clay throughout his career. And if the 39-year-old is able to play his way into form as he continues his comeback from two arthroscopic right knee surgeries, he will still be a dangerous opponent.

Federer has advanced to at least the quarter-finals here in 11 of his past 12 appearances, and in 2014 he lost in the fourth round. The 103-time tour-level titlist completed his Career Grand Slam at Roland Garros in 2009 and made the championship match on four more occasions.

Although Federer’s best surfaces have been grass and hard courts, the 20-time Grand Slam champion has been one of the best players on clay on the ATP Tour.

Federer is third on the all-time list for the most match wins at Roland Garros with 70, only trailing 13-time winner Rafael Nadal (100) and World No. 1 Novak Djokovic (74). The 39-year-old also has the third-most clay-court titles among active players with 11, trailing only Nadal (62) and Djokovic, who can win his 16th on the surface Saturday in Belgrade.

That is not just a function of how long Federer has played, either. He has won 75.9 per cent of his clay-court matches, which is also good for third among active players behind Nadal (91.6%) and Djokovic (79.7%).

There was more good news for Federer when qualifiers were placed in the Roland Garros draw on Friday evening. The eighth seed learned he will play a familiar foe in Denis Istomin, against whom he has a 7-0 ATP Head2Head record. Federer will hope to play his best and get off to a good start at his first Grand Slam since the 2020 Australian Open.

“I feel like in practice I’ve been playing better,” Federer said in Geneva. “But then again as we know, matches are a different animal.”

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Djokovic On Loaded Roland Garros Draw: ‘It’s Going To Be A Great Thrill’

  • Posted: May 28, 2021

After reaching his third ATP Tour final of the year at the Belgrade Open, Novak Djokovic told press that he feels ‘very close’ to the level he is looking for ahead of Roland Garros.

That will be just what the World No. 1 will need, as the year’s second Grand Slam unveiled a loaded draw that saw Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer land in Djokovic’s half. The top seed could face defending champion Nadal in the semi-finals, and eyes a potential meeting with Federer as early as the quarter-finals.

“I saw the draw,” Djokovic said with a wry chuckle in his post-match press conference. “It’s the first time, I think ever, where Roger, Rafa and myself are in the same half of the draw in any Grand Slam. “It’s going to be very interesting for sure. Only one of us can make the final. I’m going to obviously do my best to be that guy who reaches the final match.”

The top seed in Belgrade cruised into the semi-finals at his home event without dropping a set, but was pushed to a decider by qualifier Andrej Martin. Djokovic regrouped emphatically to secure a 6-1, 4-6, 6-0 victory to reach his first final on home soil since 2011. 

“I take out the positives from this match,” Djokovic said. “I think I played very well in the first and the third sets. It’s very important for me to finish the match in that kind of tempo and that kind of rhythm, that kind of sensation. I feel like this will give me confidence not only for tomorrow’s final but also Roland Garros.”

“I’ve been building my form, and performance-wise I’ve been playing very close to where I want to be for Roland Garros,” he added. “I’m not concerned about anything, except for those few games and few letdowns that I had today. That should not happen tomorrow or in Paris, but if they happen they happen. What can you do? It’s one of these things that you have to deal with as a tennis player. It’s important to bounce back, which I’ve done in the right way.”

Djokovic, who begins his Roland Garros campaign against the big-serving Tennys Sandgren, will be seeking his second Coupe des Mousquetaires trophy next week in Paris. A victory would make him the first man in the Open Era to win every Grand Slam championship twice.

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“You have to take it step by step,” he said. “You play every second day, and I have [as much] experience as Roger and Rafa, of course. We’ve been on the Tour many, many years and we know how to deal with these situations.

“If it comes to the possible match-up between me and Roger in the quarter-finals, of course it’s going to be a great thrill and a great challenge to play him. But it’s still a long way to go to that possible matchup.”

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Medvedev Taking Hard-Court Mentality Into Paris

  • Posted: May 28, 2021

Second seed Daniil Medvedev is delighted with the conditions in Paris ahead of Roland Garros as he aims to replicate his strong form on hard courts and progress past the opening round at the tournament for the first time in his career.

“I have to say coming here was my first practice yesterday, I was playing amazing so far. I didn’t feel that it was clay. I was playing like on hard courts, and hopefully, have some expectations,” Medvedev said. “I really like the conditions here so far, and looking forward to making a great tournament, to be honest. I feel amazing. I feel happy about life. I feel happy about tennis. First time in two months. So that’s just a great feeling.”

In September, Medvedev lost in the first round at Roland Garros to Marton Fucsovics, with clay being a surface he has struggled on in comparison to hard courts over the years. The Russian holds a 148-59 record on hard and his 10 titles have all come on the surface, including last year’s Nitto ATP Finals crown and three ATP Masters 1000 titles in Cincinnati (2019), Shanghai (2019) and Paris (2020).

This is in comparison to an 11-20 record on clay, with Medvedev recently losing to World No. 26 Aslan Karatsev in Rome and Cristian Garin in the Last 16 in Madrid. However, the 25-year-old is focused ahead of his opening round clash against World No. 37 Alexander Bublik.

“For me being in the zone basically means not missing the ball, because that’s where I’m strong. That’s when I know that, for my opponents, it’s going to be tough to beat me. Even of course sometimes they will succeed, sometimes the best ones when they play well. But it makes it tougher for my opponent,” Medvedev said. “For me it is to just practise hard, try to make the routine good, not make stupid decisions outside of the court, and then like this, the zone will come on the court one day.”

On Thursday this week, Roland Garros revealed a statue of 13-time champion Rafael Nadal. This prompted Medvedev to be asked where he would want his monument to be placed in the future if he were to have the success that the Spaniard has had. For Medvedev, the answer was clear.

“Oh, in Russia. That’s an easy answer, because that’s my home country, and of course if I manage to do something amazing on the court, and when I say ‘amazing,’ I find that yet I have not done anything to have a monument, so I need to do better,” Medvedev replied. “Then, I would be really proud if it was somewhere in Russia, of course better in Moscow but tougher in Moscow, there is going to be a monument of Daniil Medvedev.”

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Felix Says Uncle Toni 'Adds Calm & Confidence, Not Pressure'

  • Posted: May 28, 2021

Felix Auger-Aliassime garnered plenty of attention at the start of the clay-court season when he announced that Toni Nadal, Rafael Nadal’s uncle and former longtime coach, was joining his team. But even though “Uncle Toni” has plenty of experience helping his nephew lift the Coupe des Mousquetaires, Auger-Aliassime isn’t adjusting his expectations.

“My expectations haven’t changed since I started working with him. I’ve always had very high expectations all my life and Toni hasn’t added to that,” Auger-Aliassime said. “What I’m trying to do is [reach] the Top 10 and try to win Grand Slams, there is nothing better than that. Adding [someone] that has done it before adds calmness and confidence, rather than pressure.”

The #NextGenATP Canadian has often raved about how much respect he has for Nadal, who is on his team alongside Frederic Fontang. Auger-Aliassime’s best result since their relationship became official was in Barcelona, where Felix made the quarter-finals. This will be the 20-year-old’s second Roland Garros main draw.

“I chose to work with him and I believe he can help me reach my goals and my potential. That’s what we’re working on every day,” Auger-Aliassime said. “The preparation isn’t any different from any tournament or Grand Slam. We try to work with very high commitment, intensity and focus, and every day try and do a little better for when the first day of the tournament comes. We have a lot of good work to do.”

The World No. 21 has already proven that when he is on his game, he can compete with the world’s best. Auger-Aliassime owns three victories against Top 10 opponents, and he has reached seven ATP Tour finals. He will try to find his “zone” on the Parisian clay.

“Every player looks to be in the zone. I have found it before and it’s a great feeling. The balance between being aggressive and consistent, a perfect balance and feeling of being in control of the rallies,” Auger-Aliassime said. “[In] your mind, you feel able to play every point as if it’s the last. You’re not affected by the stakes or the shot.

“It starts from practice, consistency and being close to the zone is difficult, but at least attempting to do so every time. And that starts with practice.”

Auger-Aliassime will play Italian veteran Andreas Seppi in the first round.

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