Tennis News

#NextGenATP Tien continues dream ATP debut, ousts Marozsan in Winston-Salem

#NextGenATP American Learner Tien had never competed in an ATP Tour main draw entering the week. Now the 18-year-old is into the third round of the Winston-Salem Open.

The teen stunned ninth seed Fabian Maroszan 6-2, 6-7(1), 7-6(2) in two hours and nine minutes to advance at the ATP 250 event. The lefty rallied from a break down in the deciding set, took a 5-3 lead and then surged to victory in the tie-break despite failing to serve out the match.

Tien has played the past two main draws of the US Open and will compete in the season’s final major again next week. But for now, he is focused on the task at hand in North Carolina.

This year’s Bloomfield Hills ATP Challenger Tour champion converted six of his 14 break points according to Infosys ATP Stats to earn his fourth win of the tournament including qualifying. He will next play Brazilian Thiago Seyboth Wild, who ousted eighth seed Nuno Borges 7-6(2), 6-2.

Tien is ninth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Jeddah. He could soar as high as fifth if he wins the title this week in Winston-Salem.

The Californian’s friend and fellow #NextGenATP star, Alex Michelsen, also advanced with a 7-6(3), 6-4 triumph against Marton Fucsovics.

Michelsen is pursuing his first ATP Tour title this week. The 19-year-old reached a final last month in Newport and last week pushed World No. 1 Jannik Sinner in a tight two-setter.

The third-placed player in the Live Race To Jeddah, Shang Juncheng, earned a 7-5, 6-3 victory over seventh seed Mariano Navone. The 19-year-old from China then withdrew due to a lower back injury after his triumph, so 10th seed Lorenzo Sonego, who eliminated Dominic Stricker 6-4, 6-1, advanced to the quarter-finals.

American wild card Christopher Eubanks eased into the third round with a 6-1, 6-4 win against 14th seed Hugo Gaston. Last year’s Mallorca champion won 88 per cent of his first-serve points in his first Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting with the Frenchman.

Source link

Film study pays off, Coric avenges last year's Winston-Salem loss to Baez

One year on from Borna Coric’s marathon semi-final loss to Sebastian Baez at the Winston-Salem Open, the Croatian avenged that defeat Tuesday with a 6-3, 6-4 victory against the top seed and defending champion. 

“I learned from that match, I was watching that match last night,” Coric said of last year’s loss at the ATP 250. “I was prepared for the match and also it was much better for me that we played today while it was sunny. Last year we played in the evening, which was actually much, much slower.”

The 27-year-old dropped just four points behind his first serve and held the advantage in lengthy baseline rallies to improve to 1-2 in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series with Baez. Just days after their three-hour 19-minute Winston-Salem meeting in 2023, Baez again defeated Coric in the US Open first round.  

Into the Round of 16, the three-time tour-level titlist will next face 16th seed Rinky Hijikata.

Earlier, American lucky loser Zachary Svajda earned the highest-ranked win of his career when he upset World No. 29 Francisco Cerundolo 6-4, 6-4. The 21-year-old Svajda is up to No. 101 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings as he aims for his Top 100 debut.

David Goffin defeated fifth-seeded Italian Luciano Darderi 6-2, 6-4 while 10th seed Lorenzo Sonego beat Dominic Stricker 6-4, 6-1.

Source link

GB's Harris and Miyazaki win in US Open qualifiers

Britain’s Billy Harris and Lily Miyazaki win to reach the second round of qualifying at the US Open.

Source link

Reigning #NextGenATP champ Medjedovic advances in US Open qualifying

Hamad Medjedovic moved one step closer to competing in the US Open main draw for the first time on Tuesday. The champion of last year’s Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF kept his hopes alive with a gutsy qualifying performance, rallying past Oriol Roca Batalla 2-6, 6-4, 6-2 in the opening round.

Each time the 21-year-old has competed in a major, he has advanced through qualifying, a good omen for the Serbian who next faces Duje Ajdukovic. Medjedovic qualified for Roland Garros for the second consecutive year in May and also reached the Wimbledon main draw in 2023.

Abdullah Shelbayh advanced to the second round after his 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 victory against Brandon Holt. The 20-year-old Jordanian, who last year competed in Jeddah and fell to Medjedovic in round-robin play, converted five of his six break points to defeat the 26-year-old Holt.

Shelbayh is seeking his first major main draw appearance. He reached the third round of qualifying at this year’s Australian Open, where he beat Medjedovic in the penultimate round.

Third seed Aslan Karatsev raced past Enzo Couacaud 6-3, 6-1 after winning nine of 10 net points across his 57-minute victory. Karatsev was clinical from the baseline too, hitting 28 winners compared to his opponent’s six.

Karatsev, who has twice reached the third round at Flushing Meadows (2021, 2023), is hoping to make his fourth consecutive appearance in the main draw.

China’s Buyunchaokete defeated Yasutaka Uchiyama 6-2, 7-6(4) while Pole Maks Kasnikowski overcame home hope Emilio Nava 6-2, 2-6, 6-2. Ajdukovic won the all-Croatian match against Dino Prizmic 6-2, 6-4. 

Nishesh Basavareddy, 19, led the American charge by outlasting Ugo Blanchet 7-5, 6-7(2), 6-4. J.J. Wolf, Mitchell Krueger, Patrick Kypson were among the other home hopes to advance.

Source link

5 Live Tennis: US Open preview

Kelly Cates and guests preview the US Open that begins on Monday.

Source link

Sinner cleared after testing positive twice for banned substance

World number one Jannik Sinner is cleared of any wrongdoing after twice testing positive for a banned substance in March.

Source link

ATP statement on Jannik Sinner

We are encouraged that no fault or negligence has been found on Jannik Sinner’s part. We would also like to acknowledge the robustness of the investigation process and independent evaluation of the facts under the Tennis Anti-Doping Programme (TADP), which has allowed him to continue competing. This has been a challenging matter for Jannik and his team, and underscores the need for players and their entourages to take utmost care in the use of products or treatments. Integrity is paramount in our sport.

Source link

Belgrade to host ATP 250 tournament from November 2024

The ATP has announced that an ATP 250 tournament in Belgrade, Serbia, will take place from 3-9 November.

The tournament will be played on indoor hard court at Belgrade Arena, a multi-purpose venue and host of the historic 2010 and 2013 Davis Cup finals.

Djordje Djokovic, Belgrade Open Tournament Director, said: “We are grateful that we got a chance to organise yet another ATP 250 tournament, this time on a hard-court surface. Belgrade has a successful history in hard-court tournaments, as some of the most exciting Davis Cup matches and finals were played here many years ago. We are excited to continue with this tradition and try to make everything even more exciting and better, this time with an ATP tournament.”

The tournament was initially due to be held in Gijon, Spain, but was relocated due to unforeseen operational matters. The relocation will see the event held in Belgrade for an initial two-year period.

All other tournaments on the 2024 ATP Tour calendar remain unchanged at this time and are planned to take place as scheduled.

Source link

All you need to know about the US Open on the BBC

The US Open – the final Grand Slam of the year – begins in New York on Monday – here is all you need to know.

Source link

Tiafoe charges back into Top 20, Mover of Week

The Cincinnati Open provided another week of thrilling ATP Masters 1000 action as Jannik Sinner clinched his tour-leading fifth title of the season. The man he overcame in the championship match, Frances Tiafoe, has surged back into the Top 20 of the PIF ATP Rankings as a result of his run in Ohio, where he became the first American finalist since John Isner in 2013.

ATPTour.com looks at the movers in the PIF ATP Rankings as of Tuesday, 20 August.

No. 20 Frances Tiafoe, +7
Tiafoe’s run to the final at the Cincinnati Open has propelled the 26-year-old back into the Top 20 for the first time since March. The home favourite defeated Top 20 opponents Lorenzo Musetti, Hubert Hurkacz and Holger Rune (against whom he saved two match points) at the Masters 1000 event before falling to World No. 1 Sinner.

No. 13 Ben Shelton, +1 (Career High)
The 21-year-old Shelton strengthened his bid to crack the Top 10 with a run to his maiden Cincinnati quarter-final. The lefty overcame the big-serving threat of Reilly Opelka in his opening round, before also notching wins against Tomas Martin Etcheverry and Fabian Marozsan. Alexander Zverev edged Shelton in three sets in the last eight, but the American has nonetheless risen to a career-high No. 13.

No. 15 Holger Rune, +1
Rune’s inspired run in Cincinnati was ended in heartbreaking fashion by Tiafoe, but the Dane can still reflect on a confidence-building run in Ohio. Rune overcame tricky tests from Matteo Berrettini, Nuno Borges, Gael Monfils and Jack Draper before letting slip two match points in his semi-final defeat. He has risen one spot to No. 15 in the PIF ATP Rankings as he now prepares for the US Open.

No. 25 Jack Draper, +3 (Career High)
Draper’s impressive 2024 season continued in Cincinnati, where he reached his first Masters 1000 quarter-final since 2022 to seal his rise to a career-high World No. 25. The Briton improved his Lexus ATP Head2Head record against Stefanos Tsitsipas to 2-0 with a three-set victory in the second round, while he also defeated Jaume Munar and Felix Auger-Aliassime in deciding sets.

No. 52 Alex Michelsen, +5 (Career High)
Michelsen maintained his reputation as a man who raises his game on home soil by reaching the second round as a qualifier on his Cincinnati debut. The #NextGenATP star, who is currently second in the PIF ATP Live Race To Jeddah, downed Zizou Bergs, Mackenzie McDonald and Tallon Griekspoor at the Lindner Family Tennis Center, before falling in two entertaining sets to World No. 1 Sinner. Michelsen has risen five spots to a career-high World No. 52.

Other Notable Top 100 Movers
No. 32 Jiri Lehecka, +3
No. 34 Tomas Martin Etcheverry, +3
No. 35 Nuno Borges, +4 (Career High)
No. 41 Zhang Zhizhen, +3
No. 59 Roman Safiullin, +7
No. 75 Aleksandar Kovacevic, +4 (Career High)
No. 79 Marton Fucsovics, +5
No. 81 Damir Dzumhur, +19
No. 82 Jaume Munar, +7
No. 100 Laslo Djere, +6

[NEWSLETTER FORM]

Source link