Tennis News

Kyrgios Battles To Win; Dimitrov, Felix Advance At Murray River Open

Nick Kyrgios dug deep once again on his ATP Tour return on Wednesday to book his place in the Murray River Open third round.

Kyrgios, who had not played a tour-level event since February last year prior to competing in Melbourne, struck 10 aces and won 84 per cent of his first-service points in a 6-2, 7-6(7) victory over fellow Australian Harry Bourchier in 86 minutes.

The 25-year-old Kyrgios could not convert two match points at 6-5 on Bourchier’s serve in the second set, then saved three set points at 4/6 and 6/7 in the tie-break. Kyrgios will next play fourth-seeded Croatian Borna Coric, who was a 7-5, 6-4 victor over Emil Ruusuvuori of Finland.

“I’m very relieved to finish in straight sets,” said Kyrgios, who beat Alexandre Muller in three sets on Tuesday. “I thought the level that he brought in the second set was very high. He was serving really, really well. And he started getting on to a couple of my serves and obviously had a couple set points in the second set… He’s a good player. I wasn’t surprised at all by some of the shots he was hitting or how he was serving.”

Elsewhere, second seed Grigor Dimitrov and third seed Felix Auger-Aliassime came through routine wins at Melbourne Park, venue of the ATP 250 tournament, in their 2021 ATP Tour season openers.

Dimitrov lost six of his first-service points in a 6-3, 6-3 win over Australian Andrew Harris in 68 minutes, while Auger-Aliassime sailed past Yuichi Sugita of Japan 6-3, 6-1 in 66 minutes, striking 12 aces and winning 27 of 31 first-serve points. Dimitrov now plays another local, Alexei Popyrin, while Auger-Aliassime prepares to meet Egor Gerasimov of Belarus.

Czech Jiri Vesely battled back from a set and 0-3 deficit to overcome fifth-seeded Norwegian Casper Ruud 7-5, 6-7(4), 6-3 in two hours and 44 minutes for a clash against Ricardas Berankis of Lithuania.

Mektic/Pavic Keep Winning, Reach Doubles Quarter-finals
Top seeds Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic extended their winning streak to five matches with a 7-6(5), 2-6, 10-7 victory over Tomislav Brkic and Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi in the second round. New team Mektic and Pavic lifted the Antalya Open crown (d. Dodig/Polasek) in the first week of the season.

They now play eighth-seeded Belgians Sander Gille and Joran Vliegen, who also earned a Match Tie-break win over Americans Mackenzie McDonald and Tommy Paul 6-4, 6-7(4), 10-8.

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Medvedev Ensures Russian Return To ATP Cup Semi-finals

Daniil Medvedev confirmed Russia’s position in the ATP Cup semi-finals on Wednesday with a 6-2, 6-4 victory against Kei Nishikori.

The World No. 4 struck 19 winners and won all six net points he played to improve to 6-1 in ATP Cup singles matches. Medvedev, who closed his 2020 campaign with back-to-back titles at the Rolex Paris Masters and Nitto ATP Finals, has won 12 straight matches on the ATP Tour.

“[I am] really happy for the team,” said Medvedev. “[Reaching the] semi-finals is a big step… [I am] really happy that we made it in both singles. [Both matches were] straight sets, so really happy for the team and hopefully we can go further than that.”

Medvedev’s victory moved Russia to 2-0 in its tie against Japan. Earlier in the day, Rublev cruised past Yoshihito Nishioka 6-1, 6-3. Russia is through to the ATP Cup semi-finals for the second straight year.

At last year’s event, Russia entered its semi-final clash against Serbia with an unbeaten 4-0 tie record. Medvedev pushed Novak Djokovic to a third set, but fell short in his attempt to force the tie to a deciding doubles match. Russia will face the winner of Group A in Friday’s semi-finals. Two teams remain in contention for that spot: Serbia and Germany.

Medvedev achieved consistent success on Nishikori’s serve in the first set, as he created a break point in each of his four return games. The reigning Nitto ATP Finals champion rushed his opponent into errors in extended baseline rallies to establish a 4-2 lead, before Nishikori attempted to shorten points by coming to the net. That tactic proved unsuccessful, as Medvedev found his targets to place Nishikori in uncomfortable positions.

The second set proved to be far more competitive, with neither player able to reach break point in the opening eight games. But Medvedev pounced at the perfect moment to move one game from victory. The World No. 4 played with aggression and showcased great court coverage to turn rallies in his favour and claimed victory with a powerful serve out wide.

In the opening match of the tie, Rublev produced his second dominant performance in as many days to earn Russia a 1-0 tie advantage. The World No. 8 converted five of his eight break points to overcome Nishioka in 64 minutes.

Rublev has lost just seven games across his two singles encounters at this year’s event. On Tuesday, the Russian No. 2 defeated Guido Pella 6-1, 6-2 in one hour.

“I played really well today… I’m happy the way I’m playing. I’m happy that I’m feeling confident in my shots, that I’m trying to go big and in the end I feel that I will make it,” said Rublev. “I was missing this feeling, I was missing competing and the first two matches went really well so we’ll see what’s going to happen next.”

From 40/0 in the opening game of the match, Rublev dropped five consecutive points to lose his serve. It was the only mistake he made in an impressive first set. The Russian responded with six straight games, as he took the ball early and ripped multiple inside-out forehand winners.

Rublev continued to place pressure on Nishioka’s serve in the second set and he earned two further breaks to clinch his first victory in two ATP Head2Head clashes against the Japanese. Nishioka won the pair’s opening clash 6-3, 6-1 in Sydney two years ago.

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Katie Boulter beaten by Naomi Osaka, Johanna Konta loses & Dan Evans wins in Melbourne

Britons Johanna Konta and Katie Boulter fall to battling three-set defeats in Melbourne, while Dan Evans advances.

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Wawrinka's Kryptonite? Stan Says Not So Fast!

Stan Wawrinka has long struggled against Mikhail Kukushkin, and that was the case once again on Wednesday. But this time, the former World No. 3 found a way to win at the Murray River Open.

The top seed rallied past the Kazakhstani 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 after one hour and 56 minutes to reach the Round of 16 at the ATP 250. Wawrinka now leads the pair’s ATP Head2Head series 3-2.

“It felt okay. I’m happy to get the win and I’m ready to start a new tournament, a new year, especially after a few months out,” Wawrinka said. “But really happy to get the win.”

The righties had not met since 2014 Basel, where Kukushkin triumphed in straight sets. But the World No. 90’s game again proved a menace for the Swiss. Kukushkin plays with far less spin compared to the rest of the ATP Tour, and he has a deadly two-handed backhand down the line that tails away from opponents. 

Wawrinka never panicked, though, and he saved four of the five break points he faced. The 35-year-old hit 14 aces and won 81 per cent of his first-serve points in his first match of the season. 

“I was not playing my best tennis at the beginning,” Wawrinka said. “I was pushing the ball a bit too much, but I started to play a bit better, I felt the ball a bit better, so I tried to be a bit more aggressive.”

The World No. 18 will next play Australian Alex Bolt, who battled past American Mackenzie McDonald 6-4, 6-7(7), 7-5 after two hours and 29 minutes. 

Bolt wrote a My Point essay for ATPTour.com about when he quit tennis, dabbled in construction work and his out-of-the-box journey back into the sport. He has long performed well in Australia, reaching the third round of the Australian Open in 2019 and the second round last year. Another Aussie earned a big win, as James Duckworth ousted seventh seed Ugo Humbert 7-6(6), 6-4.

Eighth seed Daniel Evans progressed in straight sets, beating Portugal’s Pedro Sousa 6-3, 7-5. The Brit will next play American Marcos Giron, who upset 10th seed Adrian Mannarino 6-3, 6-4

Evans had the best season of his career in 2020, climbing to a career-high No. 28 in the FedEx ATP Rankings. The 30-year-old is pursuing his first ATP Tour title this week.

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#NextGenATP Star Sinner Off To Fast Start In 2021

#NextGenATP star Jannik Sinner finished his 2020 season with a bang, and he picked up where he left off in his first match of 2021 on Wednesday.

The 19-year-old Italian beat Australian Aleksandar Vukic 6-2, 6-4 in 67 minutes to reach the Round of 16 at the Great Ocean Road Open in Melbourne. It was his first match since claiming his maiden ATP Tour title at last November’s Sofia Open in Bulgaria. 

Sinner did not face a break point against the home favourite, winning an impressive 75 per cent of his second-serve points. The fourth seed will next play 13th seed Aljaz Bedene, who eliminated wild card Dane Sweeny 6-0, 6-4, for a spot in the quarter-finals.

The 2019 Next Gen ATP Finals champion is at a career-high No. 36 in the FedEx ATP Rankings, and he is the youngest player in the Top 100. He will have a chance to earn revenge against Bedene, who beat him in Umag two years ago.

Third seed Hubert Hurkacz continued his hot start to the season with a 6-4, 6-3 victory against Mikael Torpegaard of Denmark.

The Polish No. 1, who started 2021 with a title at the Delray Beach Open by VITACOST.com, won 31 of his 32 first-serve points to triumph in 68 minutes. The third seed will next play Pablo Cuevas or Robin Haase.

In other action, Italian Salvatore Caruso upset ninth seed Tennys Sandgren 6-4, 6-7(2), 6-1. The World No. 76 saved eight of the 10 break points he faced.

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Struff Topples Raonic, Puts Germany Ahead & Canada In Danger

Germany’s No. 2 singles player Jan-Lennard Struff claimed a major victory for his country after taking down former World No. 3 Milos Raonic 7-6(4), 7-6(2) on Wednesday to start his ATP Cup campaign.

Struff’s victory puts Team Germany in a comfortable position as they begin their Group A campaign, but it also means that alarm bells are ringing for Team Canada. After falling against defending champion Serbia on Monday, the Canadian side is on the brink of elimination from the ATP Cup. Denis Shapovalov must defeat Alexander Zverev in the No. 1 singles to keep his country alive and force a deciding doubles rubber.

Should Germany win, they will face defending champion Serbia, led by World No.1 Novak Djokovic, in a ‘win-and-you’re-in’ battle for Group A on Thursday.

Struff, No. 37 in the FedEx ATP Rankings, kept pace with the big serving Canadian throughout a tense opening set without any break points on offer. Raonic was impenetrable in the first set, and didn’t lose more than one point in any of his service games. But Struff stayed patient, and was rewarded in the tie-break. He managed to get a racquet on his first return, and outlasted Raonic to earn the mini-break. Raonic couldn’t dig himself back as Struff escaped with the first set.

The German handed Raonic his first break of serve at the ATP Cup to take a 2-0 lead in the second set, but the Canadian responded in kind to level the score 2-2. Raonic survived three double faults in the same game and saved five break points in a lengthy battle for 4-4. But Struff once again found his best tennis in the tie-break, winning the first five points in a row before closing out the victory after two hours on court.

“I knew that playing against Milos [would be] very tough. He is serving so [well], he’s won so many tournaments and he’s such a good champion,” Struff said on court. “In our three meetings, I beat him once before. So I knew I would have to play a good match, and I’m very pleased with the way I played. I played very good tie-breaks in both sets.”

More to follow…

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Fognini Overcomes Paire In Wild Match To Give Italy 1-0 Lead

Fabio Fognini won just five games in his ATP Cup opener Tuesday, but he rebounded Wednesday to beat Benoit Paire 6-1, 7-6(2) and give Italy a 1-0 lead against France.

It was a wild match of runs inside John Cain Arena. Although Fognini nearly let slip a seemingly insurmountable 6-1, 3-0 advantage, he battled through in straight sets after one hour and 19 minutes. Matteo Berrettini, Italy’s No. 1 singles player, can now clinch the tie and a spot in the semi-finals for his country with a win against Gael Monfils.

Fognini took advantage of Paire’s erratic play — including four double faults in one game — to cruise through the first set in just more than 20 minutes. The Frenchman became increasingly frustrated with his second serve, hitting five double faults from seven second serves in the opener.

But despite trailing 0-3 in the second set, Paire battled hard to find a way back into the match.

“You have to try to focus on the things that you can use,” French captain Richard Ruckelshausen told Paire at that 0-3 changeover. “Come on, stay with it.”

Paire’s two-handed backhand, which is one of the best in the game, began firing, and he used his drop shot to great effect. Fognini’s level did not drop dramatically, but the Italian became aggravated as his lead slipped away. Paire won five consecutive games to serve for the second set at 5-4, but Fognini clawed his way back into the set with a crucial forehand passing shot winner.

Fognini was simply the more solid player, and that paid dividends as he closed out the match in the tie-break. The former World No. 9 saved seven of the nine break points he faced and took full advantage of Paire’s 10 double faults.

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Federer To Make ATP Tour Return In Doha

Roger Federer will make his long-awaited return to the ATP Tour in March when he is set to compete at the Qatar ExxonMobil Open in Doha.

The Swiss superstar, who has undergone two right knee operations in the past 12 months, last played on 30 January 2020 when he lost to Novak Djokovic in the Australian Open semi-finals.

Speaking to Swiss broadcaster SRF, Federer said, “I thought for a long time when and where I should come back. Australia was still a bit too early because of my knee… I want to celebrate big victories once again. And for that I am ready to go the long, hard way.”

The Qatar ExxonMobil Open, where Federer has won three titles in 2005-06 and 2011, begins on 8 March. The ATP 250 tournament is traditionally held in January each year.

The 39-year-old Federer has won 1,242 matches and 103 tour-level titles during his legendary career. Only Jimmy Connors (1,274 match wins and 109 titles) has won more matches and titles in the Open Era (since April 1968).

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Monroe/Tiafoe Down Kyrgios/Reid At Murray River Open

Nicholas Monroe and Frances Tiafoe made a strong start to their Murray River Open campaign on Tuesday, as they overcame home favourites Nick Kyrgios and Matt Reid 7-5, 6-4.

The American pair, which reached the Delray Beach Open by VITACOST.com quarter-finals last month, saved all three break points it faced to advance in 63 minutes. Monroe and Tiafoe will face fourth seeds Marcelo Melo and Horia Tecau in the second round. Melo and Tecau, who first faced each other on the ATP Challenger Tour in April 2007, will be making their team debut this week.

Mackenzie McDonald and Tommy Paul translated singles success onto the doubles court at the with a 6-4, 6-2 win against Andres Molteni and Hugo Nys. The Americans both won their first-round singles matches on Monday, and they showed confidence in their doubles victory, saving eight of the nine break points they faced.

Tomislav Brkic and Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi beat Marco Cecchinato and Lorenzo Sonego 6-4, 6-2. The unseeded duo will face top seeds Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic for a place in the quarter-finals.

In other doubles action, Australia’s James Duckworth and Marc Polmans broke serve on three occasions to defeat Rohan Bopanna and Frederik Nielsen 6-4, 6-3. Divij Sharan and Igor Zelenay also advanced, ousting Guillermo Duran and Albert Ramos-Vinolas 4-6, 6-3, 10-8.

Khachanov/Kecmanovic Claim Win At Great Ocean Road Open
Karen Khachanov and Miomir Kecmanovic played a tour-level doubles event together for the first time on Tuesday, and they clicked into high gear at the Great Ocean Road Open.

The singles stars battled past Romain Arneodo and Salvatore Caruso 2-6, 6-4, 10-3 after one hour and 18 minutes. They dominated on serve in the Match Tie-break, winning all six of their service points to triumph.

Roberto Carballes Baena and Pablo Cuevas were also victorious, defeating Ji Sung Nam and Min-Kyu Song 3-6, 6-3, 10-4. Carballes Baena’s countrymen, Pablo Andujar and Pedro Martinez, also booked their place in the second round. The Spaniards broke Laslo Djere and Stefano Travaglia on five occasions to record a 7-5, 6-3 win in 72 minutes.

There were also wins for two all-Australian partnerships. Matthew Ebden and John-Patrick Smith beat countrymen Christopher O’Connell and Aleksandar Vukic 7-6(5), 6-4. Max Purcell and Jordan Thompson were leading Nikoloz Basilashvili and Andre Begemann 6-4, 5-4 when their opponents retired from the match.

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Billie Jean King Cup: Great Britain v Mexico to be played at National Tennis Centre

Great Britain’s tie against Mexico in the Billie Jean King Cup will be played at the National Tennis Centre in Roehampton in April.

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