Most 22-year-olds haven’t even started thinking about investing, but Taylor Fritz made a groundbreaking move by becoming the first professional tennis player to invest in the rapidly growing esports industry.

The American, an avid gamer himself, concluded his career-best 2019 season by partnering with ReTKGlobal. The company owns several professional Esports teams and Fritz has tested his skills against some of the world’s best.

“I always thought that the esports market was going to be big. I thought that it was a good time [to invest] and an opportunity presented itself, so I went for it,” Fritz told ATPTour.com. “I’ve watched a lot of the London Royal Ravens in the Call of Duty League and seen some of their pro players play in other games. I’ve gotten to play with some of those guys in public matches, so that’s been a lot of fun.

”There are some similarities to being a professional gamer and a professional tennis player because if you want to be good at anything, it takes a lot of time and hard work.”

Fritz has turned to gaming as a relaxing outlet when he’s on the road at ATP Tour events. Fortnite, Valeron, Call of Duty and FIFA are among his favourites to play. His controllers come along with his racquets for every flight and he’s found other players on Tour to battle against from the comfort of his hotel room.

“I like anything where I can be competitive playing against somebody. I bring my gaming laptop and controllers when I’m on the road and then also put a screen in my suitcase,” Fritz said. “The computer runs everything but sometimes the hotel wi-fi isn’t good enough, so then I just can’t play that week.

“Nick Kyrgios is probably one of the better gamers on Tour. He’s incredibly good at Call of Duty and FIFA. Jack Sock is really good at Fortnite as well.”

Fritz has been putting his gaming skills to use during the current suspension of play on Tour by taking part in several celebrity charity tournaments. He won a pair State Farm Play Apart Together events that featured Valorant and FIFA, respectively, and teamed with Addison Rae to prevail in the Stay at Home Slam, a live virtual tennis tournament on Nintendo Switch’s Mario Tennis Aces. The pair defeated Kei Nishikori and Steve Aoki in the final.

@whoisaddison and I really just won the Stay At Home Slam + 1 MILLION dollars for our charity of choice @nokidhungry !!!! u can tell I was a bit pumped ? pic.twitter.com/XiXOioRCWS

— Taylor Fritz (@Taylor_Fritz97) May 4, 2020

Each State Farm event yielded $25,000 for his charity of choice and the Stay At Home Slam brought in $1 million since he and Rae competed for the same organisation. Fritz has been playing for No Kid Hungry, a nonprofit that works to end child hunger in America. It’s a cause that’s close to his heart as he remains at home in California with his wife and three-year-old son, Jordan.

“I’m very empathetic towards kids since I have a child, so I can’t imagine my son being in a position where he doesn’t know if he can eat,” Fritz said. “That’s what No Kid Hungry is fighting to stop, so I’m making sure that I’m giving my time and donating to an organisation that’s doing everything they can to help kids. I’m all for it.”

Is Naomi Osaka gearing up for a second career interviewing ATP Tour players? After grilling Frances Tiafoe on Thursday and Gael Monfils on Friday, the WTA star returned on Saturday to Instagram Live and completed the hat trick in an entertaining conversation with Stefanos Tsitsipas.

It didn’t all go according to plan, though. The reigning Nitto ATP Finals champion caught Osaka off guard with an unexpected prank when she asked him about his hair care routine.

“I put Greek olive oil in my hair, then I add some wasabi in and some vinegar as well. It blends really well… Then I leave it in for about 25 or 30 minutes [and] go take a shower,” Tsitsipas explained. “I definitely put mayonnaise in, that’s for sure. It’s like a one time per week thing.”

Osaka was initially skeptical of his explanation, but soon sat mesmerised as he revealed all of the details. But when she asked him whether or not the mixture smelled, the Greek broke out into a wide grin.

“Did you actually believe me? I’m making things up,” Tsitsipas said, laughing. “I’m so good at lying! All my life I thought I was so bad at it, but now I suddenly got good at it.”

?PRANK ALERT?@StefTsitsipas reveals his “hair care routine” ?

?: @naomiosaka (IG) pic.twitter.com/tWFwmziKXw

— ATP Tour (@atptour) May 23, 2020

The World No. 6 in the FedEx ATP Rankings gave straight answers to her other questions, though. Osaka had originally planned for the interview to consist of seven questions, but Tsitsipas happily obliged as more came to her throughout their discussion.

Both players also took to reflect on their lives in lockdown. Tsitsipas admitted that he found it difficult to not be able to work out regularly for several weeks while he remained at home.

“I felt awful. I felt like I was getting fat and didn’t feel healthy, so I tried to get back to it as soon as possible,” Tsitsipas said. “It’s nice getting a good workout where you can sweat it out and be active. It just feels good. And then you can consume all of the calories after, all this ice cream that I like!”

Tsitsipas also discussed what drives through him through the tough practise sessions he’s currently taking on in France. He said that “deliver a feeling” has become his mantra as he looks to create more memorable moments when play resumes on Tour.

“What inspires me is to deliver a feeling to people who watch me, who get to see my artistry in any way. I want to show people a better side of life,” Tsitsipas said. “I’m not sure if I’ve contributed much to that, but it’s something that I [aspire] to. I want to leave a legacy behind. I think everyone does.”

Jannik Sinner is the reigning Next Gen ATP Finals champion and the youngest Top 100 player in the FedEx ATP Rankings.

ATPTour.com looks at five things you should know about the 18-year-old.

1) He Stunned The Field At The 2019 Next Gen ATP Finals
Heading into the 2019 Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan, Italian players owned a 0-6 record at the innovative 21-and-under event. But Jannik Sinner, competing as the Italian wild card, stormed through the draw to take the trophy.

Sinner topped Group B with a 2-1 record, beating Frances Tiafoe and Mikael Ymer to advance to the semi-finals. From there, the 6’2” right-hander powered past Miomir Kecmanovic in four sets and top seed Alex de Minaur in straight sets to take the title in front of a passionate home crowd at the Allianz Cloud.

“I’m surprised because it’s been an unbelievable week,” said Sinner in Milan. “All the players are unbelievable players. If not, they are not here. I was the [lowest-ranked] one. I was the [eighth] seed. So I tried to have my chances and, of course, today I’m very happy about my game.”

2) He Is A Former Junior Skiing Champion
Five years ago, Sinner’s focus was on skiing rather than tennis. The Italian, who did not touch a racquet for a year at the age of seven, was playing just two days per week before moving to Riccardo Piatti’s academy in Bordighera as a 13-year-old.

“When I went on court just two times in a week, I really enjoyed it. I just tried to enjoy and it was fun. It was just fun,” said Sinner. “But now it’s a little bit more than fun. Now it’s fun, but you want to go a little bit further and I think that makes this very important.”

Claudio Pistolesi, the 1985 junior World No. 1, recently shared his opinion with ATPTour.com on Sinner’s unconventional route to the ATP Tour and the benefits his skiing background has on his game.

“Like Lorenzo Sonego, who played football until the age of 14, he has broken all the rules that you follow from an academy perspective, having done another sport to a good level,” said Pistolesi. “He brings some lateral skills to tennis from skiing in his movement around the tennis court, and he steps into the ball automatically.”

3) He Owns The Heaviest Backhand On The ATP Tour
In a recent Infosys ATP Beyond The Numbers analysis of players who competed in a minimum of 10 ATP matches on Hawk-Eye courts from 2018-2020, Sinner’s backhand was identified as a peak performer in both categories measured.

In terms of spin, no player on the ATP Tour hits their backhand with more spin than Sinner’s 1858 rpm. The 18-year-old also owns the fifth-fasted backhand, with an average speed of 69.1 mph.

4) He’s Raising Funds For COVID-19 Relief
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Sinner has found multiple ways to support Italian efforts in the fight against the virus.

Alongside his management company, StarWing Sports, and Piatti, Sinner donated €12,500 to Cesvi, a humanitarian organisation. The donation will be used to help with medical emergencies in Bergamo.

“The unity in Italy throughout this crisis has been incredible. Among many thousands of Italians that have helped through this crisis, I want to applaud the 250 volunteers who came together in Bergamo recently to build a Field Hospital in just eight days,” wrote Sinner on Twitter. “This unity is what will get us through this period. I want to do my part, as much as I can, to contribute in pulling us out of this.”

Sinner also created the #SinnerPizzaChallenge, where he will donate €10 alongside his management company for every photo he receives of a pizza that resembles himself or any past or present Italian figure. The money raised from the challenge will be used to fund vital medical supplies in Italy during the pandemic.

5) He Supports AC Milan
Sinner is a supporter of Italian football club, AC Milan. Ahead of his title run at last year’s Next Gen ATP Finals, the Italian was able to attend one of the club’s matches at their home ground: the San Siro stadium.

“My best friend is a Milan fan, so we watched a little bit of football and now I am a Milan fan,” said Sinner.

Your favourite players have been finding plenty of ways to keep busy over the past week. From Grigor Dimitrov’s custom birthday cake to Novak Djokovic’s own birthday celebration as he turned 33, find out how the world’s best players have been spending their days.

Dimitrov showed off his Bulgarian pride with a lavish birthday cake to celebrate turning 29.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

Thank you for all the birthday wishes! I have missed home a lot these past few months and I want to thank @exquisitedesserts for giving me a this special cake to remind me of a place I care so much about ?? ❤️ ??

A post shared by Grigor Dimitrov (@grigordimitrov) on May 19, 2020 at 9:49am PDT

Djokovic received socially distant congratulations to mark his birthday.

Thank you all for my birthday wishes ? ¡Muchas gracias a todos! pic.twitter.com/uY0JbnvAOx

— Novak Djokovic (@DjokerNole) May 22, 2020

Karen Khachanov also joined the birthday train with a basketball cake as he turned 24.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

24?

A post shared by Karen Khachanov |Карен Хачанов (@karenkhachanov) on May 21, 2020 at 12:56pm PDT

Gael Monfils held an Instagram Live session with Naomi Osaka.

The best dancer on tour? ?

(Besides @Gael_Monfils, of course) ?

?: @naomiosaka (IG) pic.twitter.com/6TSWhbY8u2

— ATP Tour (@atptour) May 22, 2020

Taylor Fritz owned up to the embarrassing prank that Frances Tiafoe once played on him in Rome.

Can confirm this happened ? had lunch tray in my hands…. wearing the shorts that have built in compression so was all out there for .5 seconds in Rome player dining https://t.co/wxHui0MzUG

— Taylor Fritz (@Taylor_Fritz97) May 22, 2020

Marin Cilic perfected his clay-court slide.

 

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?‍♂️?️???

A post shared by Marin Čilić (@marincilic) on May 22, 2020 at 9:41am PDT

Diego Schwartzman made time to work on his fitness at home.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

Les dejo todos los ejercicios que hice, esperemos que no se aburran porque fueron muchos ??✅??

A post shared by Diego Schwartzman (@dieschwartzman) on May 20, 2020 at 4:13pm PDT

Corentin Moutet released a new original rap song.

 

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??̂?? ?? ?’???? ??? ??̀ ??????? ?’????̀?? ??? ?? ?’????? ????? ??̂?? ?? ???̀?? ?̧? ???? ?̂??? ??̀ ?? ??? ?’???? ???? ?̧? ?? ???? ?’?? ????? PETIT FRERE ? Lien dans la bio ? ? : @cocodubreuilphoto

A post shared by Corentin Moutet (@corentin.moutet) on May 22, 2020 at 9:55am PDT

Vasek Pospisil played his part in COVID-19 relief efforts by helping donate 10,000 masks in Vancouver.

Thrilled & honored to partner w/ @Huawei_Canada and be able to donate 10,000 masks to the Greater Vancouver Food Bank. Thank you @vanfoodbank for the tour and for being so vital to the community. Thank you to the frontline workers for all you continue to do during this pandemic. pic.twitter.com/JcmJzlqGzH

— Vasek Pospisil (@VasekPospisil) May 22, 2020

Andre Agassi proudly showed off the athletic prowess of his son, Jaden.

He gets it from his mom #MarryUp pic.twitter.com/UvJCfR3xCx

— Andre Agassi (@AndreAgassi) May 22, 2020

Wayne Gretzky and Steve Nash are legends in the hockey and basketball worlds, respectively. Besides both of them being Canadian, they share something else in common: a love for tennis.

Gretzky, 59, and Nash, 46, both followed the sport closely before this era, but both stars are in awe of the Big Three: Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.

“If you could see a Roger Federer-Rafael Nadal final, and Djokovic is pretty good, but there’s something [special] about Nadal and Federer playing and competing for a championship,” Gretzky said on Tennis United. “For me, that gets my blood flowing and I can’t wait to watch it.”

Gretzky’s favourite match of all-time is the 1981 Wimbledon final, when John McEnroe — who is now the hockey legend’s good friend — won The Championships for the first time by defeating Bjorn Borg.

“McEnroe-Borg was a unique rivalry because it was more of my era, so I’m probably a little more comfortable with that,” Gretzky said. “As you know, the athletes of today are so much better and so much more conditioned… it’s a different sport now, and every sport is like that.”

Watch This Week’s Tennis United:

Nash’s love of tennis began with McEnroe, too. The American intrigued the Canadian with his personality, and reeled him in with his talent.

“You couldn’t take your eyes off him because you never knew what was going to happen. He wore his emotions on his sleeve,” Nash said. “But I just think the touch, the creativity, the feel at the net, those things were just so beautiful. He was an artist out there in many respects. It was this crazy mix of this big personality, you never knew where his emotions were going to go. At the same time, he’d hit a drop volley… he was mesmerising with his play, his competitive fire.”

But like Gretzky, Nash is consistently in awe of the Big Three. The basketball star is perhaps most impressed that they all have different styles, yet each has enjoyed tremendous success.

“I never really felt like I had to choose between Federer and Nadal. I felt like I could really appreciate both of them to reach their limit, their max, their potential, and may the best man win,” Nash said. “It’s just amazing to see the modern game with Djoker, Roger and Rafa, how they’re all so different. They all get it done in different ways. But if you individually looked at their resumés, you can make a case that each of them is the best player to ever play the game.

“Roger started out being so mesmerising. He was a great athlete, but he also has so much variety, beautiful strokes. He slices the backhand, he comes over the top of it hard, he finds angles. The forehand is obviously mastery, but then he has the serve, the volleys and all the variety in between.

“Rafa, when he started playing you thought, ‘Wow, this guy’s just a beast of an athlete and he’s mentally as tough as anyone we’ve seen maybe in any sport.’ But as the years go by you realise, I don’t know if I’ve ever seen Rafa miss a volley. He’s an artist, too.

“Then you look at Djokovic, the way he moves, his flexibility, his consistency. If he’s playing at his best, to beat him is almost impossible. He makes you hit so many extra balls and then he puts so much pressure on you to hit the lines. He’s in his own right as good as anyone we’ve ever seen.”

Gretzky and Nash are both proud of the recent success of Canadians. Gretzky was in attendance at a memorable match three years ago, when Canadian star Denis Shapovalov stunned Rafael Nadal in Montreal at the Coupe Rogers.

“We were lucky enough to be at the [Coupe Rogers] when Denis had his run. We were at the Nadal match, which was so exciting,” Gretzky said. “My wife kept hitting me a little bit saying, ‘Every time you cheer for Denis, Nadal is watching you.’ So I had to back down a little bit out of respect for the opponent.”

When it was announced that the BNP Paribas Open would not be held as scheduled due to COVID-19 concerns, Lukasz Kubot returned home to Poland fairly quickly. It is two and a half months later and Marcelo Melo, his doubles partner, still doesn’t know when they’ll see each other again.

“Doubles of course is like a marriage, so sometimes it’s good to have a little break,” Melo told ATPTour.com. “Of course it’s not necessary, at least between me and Lukasz… I don’t know when we’re going to see each other again. Of course it depends on when tournaments will come back and where we can practise, but sometimes it’s good for the doubles [players].”

Kubot and Melo have qualified for three consecutive Nitto ATP Finals together, and they have lifted 14 tour-level trophies as a team. Spending months apart is certainly not the norm, but they have maintained contact during the suspension of play.

“We have a group chat with our team, so we keep in touch there. Of course we talk one, two times a week, because at this time there are not so many things to talk about,” Melo said. “Normally we always talk about the schedule, practice, this and that. Of course we ask each other how everyone is doing, et cetera, so we keep in touch that way.”

Typically, doubles partners don’t go more than a few weeks without seeing each other, so it’s easier to appreciate one another during this time apart.

“Kubi is a very nice guy. Kubi is always positive. He always wants to go practise. He brings such a good energy,” Melo said. “We can miss the good energy from such a good guy.”

Melo stayed in Indian Wells at first, before going to Florida for almost two months to quarantine with close friend Alexander Zverev. About a week ago, he returned home to Belo Horizonte, Brazil, where he plans to train with fellow doubles star Bruno Soares when allowed to do so.

“We were very lucky to be there,” Melo said. “Of course we need to see how we’re going to manage [in Brazil], but it’s always good to be back home.”

The 36-year-old Melo enjoyed spending an extended period of time with Zverev, who is 23. Despite the age gap, when they compete at the same event, they always are attached at the hip.

“He’s a very nice guy to hang out with. His family is very nice, his team is very nice, so I get along with them,” Melo said.

The friends only played doubles together once, at 2017 Shenzhen. Melo thinks it would be fun to compete together again when tournaments resume.

Who would be the team leader?

“This is not even a question. Of course, I would be the boss!” Melo said, cracking a laugh. “He’s not going to accept it, for sure. He’s going to say he wants to be the boss. In singles of course it’s going to be [him], but in doubles he needs to follow my rules.”

The perfect storm in a tennis match is Rafael Nadal hitting either three of four balls into the court.

Not more. Not less.

Just three or four moves is all it takes for the Spaniard to lure his opponents into checkmate.

An Infosys ATP Beyond The Numbers analysis shows that Nadal is in a class of his own in mid-length rallies of 5-8 shots. The data set is comprised of players who competed in a minimum of 20 matches at ATP events on Hawk Eye courts from the beginning of the 2018 season.

The three rally lengths commonly measured in tennis are:

•0-4 Shots (First Strike)
•5-8 Shots (Patterns Of Play)
•9+ Shots (Extended Rallies)

It’s important to note that rally length in our sport is predicated by the ball landing in the court, not hitting the strings. So a “three-shot” rally is a serve in, a return in, and a winner, while a “two-shot” rally is a serve in, a return in, and an error. That explains a “zero-shot” rally, which is a double fault. The ball simply didn’t land in the court.

The inner workings of Nadal’s formidable game can be best understood when it’s dissected by how many shots he ideally desires to win a point. It highlights efficiency and intent.

Nadal won a head-turning 59.7 per cent (652/1092) of points in the 5-8 shot range from 33 matches. Next best is Diego Schwartzman at 55.9 per cent (547/978), putting the Spaniard almost four percentage points higher than his closest rival. Novak Djokovic sits in third place, having won 55.5 per cent (1043/1879) in 5-8 shot rallies.

The leaders in the three rally lengths are:

•0-4 Shots: Daniil Medvedev (55.0%)
•5-8 Shots = Rafael Nadal (59.7%)
•9+ Shots = Yoshihito Nishioka (56.6%)

Mid-length rallies of 5-8 shots (3-4 shots for each player) are all about specific patterns of play, much like moves on a chess board. The first shot involves the serve or return, where Nadal is typically targeting his opponent’s backhand return, or moving way back in the court for his own return to enhance his chances of putting it successfully back in play. His second shot is all about taking a 50-50 battle and “arm-wrestling” it in his favor.

There are eight ways to attack an opponent and gain control of the point.

Eight Control Factors In A Rally

Nadal’s third shot of the rally typically involves a potent cocktail of two or more of the control factors, mentioned above, infused into the same shot. For example, he loves to hit a run-around forehand standing in the Deuce court directed cross court past his opponent’s outstretched forehand wing. That specific shot, which he has executed tens of thousands of times in his career, is a crushing mix of direction, spin, power and court position.

If Nadal needs a fourth shot to reach “checkmate”, his court position is typically inside the baseline taking time away with wicked spin and direction back behind a running opponent. Nadal is much better off running these three- and four-shot combinations than trying to end the point quicker, or trying to outlast his opponent.

Nadal Win Percentages By Rally Length

•0-4 Shots = 52.9% (1126/2127)
•5-8 Shots = 59.7% (652/1092)
•9+ Shots = 55.3% (412/745)

The Spaniard’s game is not built around massive power in the first two shots. It is also not best suited to grinding endlessly in long rallies, where win percentages naturally gravitate closer together than further apart.

It’s all about patterns. It’s about a successful sequence of shots that out-smart and out-maneuver opponents to achieve his desired end-game with three or four moves.

Nadal is our sport’s Grandmaster chess champion.